Ceasefire in Ukraine: Russian demands contained in the memorandum revealed in Istanbul

This document, submitted at the last minute, clearly reveals the Kremlin’s political, territorial, and military objectives. Reading the document shows that Moscow is not proposing a negotiated peace, but rather a political, military, and diplomatic capitulation of Ukraine. Here are the main points of the Russian demands:

• Recognition of the annexation of Crimea, Donbass, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and “Novorossia”.

• Complete withdrawal of the Ukrainian army from these territories within 30 days.

The content of this memorandum would legitimize a military conquest contrary to international law, and formalize a major territorial loss for Ukraine. The Kremlin also intends to impose on Ukraine the prohibition of joining any alliance (e.g., NATO) and the prohibition of any foreign military presence or Western bases.

Russia also demands a cap on the Ukrainian army’s personnel, an end to the delivery of foreign arms and intelligence, the dissolution of so-called “nationalist” militias, and demobilization.

The Kremlin also wants to extend its political and institutional control in Ukraine by organizing national elections under Russian supervision, within 100 days after the lifting of martial law.

The memorandum also mentions revising Ukraine’s language and religious policies to recognize Russian as an official language in the affected areas and lift restrictions on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

The Kremlin seeks to restore a form of symbolic russification in the conquered territories. The other Russian demands are summarized as follows:

• Legal immunity and international rehabilitation,
• Mutual renouncement of any war reparations claims,
• Lifting of Ukrainian sanctions against Russia,
• Restoration of economic and diplomatic relations, particularly concerning gas transit.

Meeting these demands will lead to a 30-day ceasefire, established after the return of 6,000 Ukrainian soldiers’ bodies. This ceasefire would be contingent on the Ukrainian withdrawal from the annexed regions.

The final peace treaty must be endorsed by the UN Security Council. The entire process is designed to be controlled by Russia. The Kremlin memorandum presents itself as a catalog of maximalist demands, a content obviously rejected by the authorities in Kyiv.