Ukraine urges OSCE to play role in implementing Zelenskyy’s peace formula

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Ukraine’s foreign minister on Thursday urged the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to play a role in implementing President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s 10-point peace formula.

“The restoration of a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace, as well as a strong deterrent against the Russian threat will contribute to this indivisibility of peace. And this is exactly what the Peace Formula proposes. The OSCE should play a role in the implementation of the Peace Formula,” Andrii Sybiha told the OSCE’s 31st Ministerial Council meeting in Malta's capital Valletta, according to a transcript of his speech released by the Foreign Ministry.

Zelenskyy's peace formula was laid out at the 2022 G20 summit in Indonesia, with its final step being the signing of a peace accord. It also focuses on issues such as nuclear safety and food and energy security.

Expressing that Kyiv wants a “just peace” and respect for “principles for all,” as the Russia-Ukraine war marked its 1,000th-day last month, Sybiha said these are the two approaches to the future that are being decided right now in Ukraine.

Sybiha underlined the need to eliminate “grey zones,” accusing Russia of turning them into “zones of influence.”

“Instead, we need geopolitical certainty on Ukraine as part of the Euro-Atlantic community,” Sybiha said and claimed that Russia’s participation in the OSCE is a “threat to cooperation in Europe.”

The Ukrainian foreign minister also reminded his counterparts of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, which is marking the 30th anniversary of its signing on Thursday, describing the deal that provided Kyiv with security assurances in return for it giving up its Soviet-era nuclear weapons as “failed.”

“The Budapest Memorandum has shown the price of agreements at the cost of Ukraine. There will be no compromises on our territorial integrity, sovereignty, or future security,” Sybiha said.

He went on to accuse Russia of expanding the Ukraine war, adding that this demands strong responses.

“We must raise the cost of the war for the aggressor. We must force Moscow to accept a just peace. We must demonstrate strength and unity in the face of blackmail. Now is the time to defend our principles, not simply declare them,” he added.