UK at OSCE: Peace deal must guarantee Ukraine reliable security mechanisms

The UK has stated at a meeting of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) that "the future of Ukraine is for Ukrainians to decide" and that any peace agreement must ensure "robust security guarantees are in place to prevent future Russian aggression".

Source: Neil Holland, Head of the United Kingdom's Delegation to the OSCE, during a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council on Thursday 27 November in Vienna, as reported by Ukrinform

Quote: "The UK position is clear. We believe that the future of Ukraine is for Ukrainians to decide. For any deal to provide a just and lasting peace, it will need to protect Ukraine's sovereignty and security; uphold the principle that borders should not be changed by force; and ensure robust security guarantees are in place to prevent future Russian aggression."

Details: Holland noted that the UK welcomed the joint statement by the US and Ukraine following "highly productive talks over the weekend in Geneva aimed at ending Russia's illegal war of aggression".

He believes that Ukraine has consistently demonstrated its commitment to peace and confirmed its readiness for a complete and unconditional ceasefire.

In contrast, as Holland emphasised, Russia is continuing its attacks even during the talks.

Quote: "In contrast, while the latest round of talks was taking place, Russia was raining down drones and missiles on Ukrainian cities... Russia knows that its position is absurd: to claim that it is serious about peace talks while maintaining its maximalist terms and attempting to bomb Ukraine's civilians into submission."

Details: Holland confirmed that London will continue to support Ukraine.

Quote: "In the meantime, the UK will continue our support for Ukraine and help ensure that they have the military equipment that they need to defend themselves from Russia's continued aggression, whilst sustaining economic pressure on President Putin to bear down on the revenues that are funding the war." [N.B. Ukrainska Pravda does not recognise Putin as president – ed.]

Previously: According to a survey by the think tank More in Common, a relative majority of people in the United Kingdom believe that US President Donald Trump is standing in the way of efforts to achieve peace in Ukraine.

Background:

• The United States and Ukraine developed a new 19-point peace agreement during the Geneva talks but left the most politically sensitive issues for the two presidents to decide.
• Talks between US and Russian representatives continued in Abu Dhabi on 25 November.

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