Ukrainian lawmakers want territorial concessions ruled out

The Ukrainian government should never cede any of the country’s territories to end the conflict with Russia, a group of Ukrainian MPs has argued. The proposed statement came days after a NATO official suggested that Kiev could abandon its claims to territories that voted to join Russia in exchange for membership in the US-led military alliance.

The document, which was put forward on Friday, calls for the unconditional withdrawal of Russian forces back to Ukraine’s 1991 borders. This should include the pullout of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet from Crimea, the lawmakers insisted.

Furthermore, if and when Ukraine retakes the peninsula, Russian nationals residing there would be deported, the statement envisages. According to the document, Ukrainians who had been “automatically or forcefully” given Russian citizenship would not be considered as such.

The proposal was introduced days after Stian Jenssen, the chief of staff to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, suggested that a “solution could be for Ukraine to give up territory, and get NATO membership in return,” as quoted by Norway’s VG newspaper.

Jenssen’s remarks quickly came under fire from Ukrainian officials and he was forced to backtrack, describing the initial suggestion as a “mistake.”

In early June, the Ukrainian military launched its long-awaited counteroffensive in a bid to reclaim territories in the east and southeast of the country. However, despite massive Western support, Kiev’s forces have not achieved any significant gains. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the operation has already cost Ukraine 43,000 men and nearly 5,000 pieces of military hardware. Top officials in Kiev and some Western capitals have acknowledged that the push has failed to live up to the initial high expectations and is progressing more slowly than anticipated.

Crimea joined Russia in the wake of the coup in Kiev in 2014 following a referendum that saw the majority of locals back the unification. The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as well as Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions, joined Russia last September following referendums.

Ukraine along with most other nations has refused to recognize the results of those plebiscites, denouncing the redrawing of borders as an illegal annexation.