Ukraine vows not to surrender

 

The country will not “give up a single inch” of its territory, its foreign minister has said

© Getty Images / sandsun

Ukraine will not “capitulate” to Russia, Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said on Sunday ahead of negotiations between Moscow and Kiev.

The two delegations are due to meet at an undisclosed location in Belarus, close to the borders of both countries.

“There is nothing bad in talks as such and, if the outcome of these talks will be peace and the end of war, that should be welcomed. But I want to make it very clear: we will not surrender, we will not capitulate, we will not give up a single inch of our territory,” Kuleba said during a press conference in Kiev.

He said that Ukraine agreed to send a delegation to the border “to listen to what Russia wants to say” and to outline what Kiev thinks of “this war and Russia’s actions.”

READ MORE: Ukraine agrees to hold talks with Russia in Belarus – Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that the military offensive against Ukraine was prompted by the need to “demilitarize” the country, to protect the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, and to prevent perceived threats from NATO. Ukraine and the West consider the attack completely “unjustified” and “unlawful.”