Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Wednesday that she was in favor of resuming negotiations with Ukraine shortly after the Russian Defense Ministry announced the withdrawal of the Russian Army to the western bank of the Dnieper River.
«We remain open to negotiations. We have never rejected them, we are ready to conduct them, of course, taking into account the realities that are brewing at the moment,» he explained, as reported by the TASS news agency.
Zakharova also criticized Germany, asserting that instead of pushing Ukraine into negotiations, it continues to supply arms. «The German side, contrary to its own laws and regulations prohibiting the export of lethal weapons to crisis regions and armed conflict zones, continues to supply weapons systems to the Kiev regime, thus encouraging its continuation of hostilities at all costs,» she specified.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has instructed Commander Sergei Surovikin of the Russian forces in Ukraine to «begin with the withdrawal of troops and take all measures to ensure the safe transfer of personnel, weapons and equipment across the Dnieper River.»
The authorities established by Russia in the occupied Ukrainian province of Kherson (south) announced on Monday the end of the «organized evacuation» in the «eastern bank» of the region and stated that the remaining people who want to leave the area will have to do it by their own means.
Russia completed a first phase of the evacuation at the end of October, although a few days later the pro-Russian authorities decided to extend the evacuation perimeter by an additional 15 kilometers. The Ukrainian Army has continued to advance in the region, although it has warned of possible «tricks» by Moscow during the withdrawal.
The occupied Kherson region is part of the Ukrainian regions annexed in September by Russia, along with Lugansk, Donetsk and Zaporiyia in a move that was rejected by the international community.
