A month after Russian tanks rolled into the Ukrainian border after President Vladimir Putin declared war in the name of a “military operation”, the formerly Soviet-era nation is prepared to discuss the neutral status that Moscow has been demanding to reduce the growing western influence in the region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has now emerged as a symbol of strength against Russian aggression, wants such a pact to be guaranteed by third parties and put to a referendum.

Speaking to Russian journalists, Zelenskyy said Russia’s invasion had caused the destruction of Russian-speaking cities in Ukraine, with damage worse than the Russian wars in Chechnya. “Security guarantees and neutrality, the non-nuclear status of our state. We are ready to go for it. This is the most important point,” he added.

Ruling out reports of recapturing all Russian-held territory by force, he said that it would lead to World War III.

Ukrainian soldiers of the 103rd Separate Brigade of the Territorial Defense of the Armed Forces, attend a training exercise, at an undisclosed location near Lviv, western Ukraine. (Photo: AP)

WHAT IS NEUTRAL STATUS THAT UKRAINE WANTS TO DISCUSS?

Both Kyiv and Moscow have been negotiating for weeks on end in a bid to end the conflict as Ukraine is pummeled by land and air, while Russian forces fatigue in a war that is a result of President Putin’s fixation on remaking what was once the Soviet Union. The talks are now to be centered around neutrality where Ukraine is likely to act as a line of demarcation between the West and Moscow.

As per international law, neutrality talks about a country not interfering in situations of international armed conflict involving other belligerent parties. According to the United Nations, neutrality is defined as the legal status arising from the abstention of a state from all participation in a war between other states, the maintenance of an attitude of impartiality toward the belligerents, and the recognition by the belligerents of this abstention and impartiality.

As per Article 2 of the UN Charter, it obligates member states to settle their international disputes by peaceful means and to refrain from the threat, or the use of force in their relations. The resolution also underlined that some states’ national policies of neutrality can contribute to the strengthening of international peace and security and play an important role in developing mutually beneficial relations among countries of the world.

WHAT DOES NEUTRALITY MEAN FOR UKRAINE?

When it comes to Ukraine, neutrality bolsters hope of peace between Kyiv and Moscow after five weeks into what has devolved into a bloody war of attrition, with thousands dead and almost four million Ukrainians fleeing the country. However, if the neutral status is given Ukraine will have to bid goodbye to its aspirations of joining Nato, the alliance between western countries, that has been a thorn in Putin’s eyes for a long time.

Putin had insisted ahead of the war that Ukraine will not join Nato and that western countries will have to pull out from the Ukrainian borders and eastern Europe. Part of an imagined Russian world for Putin, Ukraine, will have to look for security assurances outside of Nato as it eyes a seat in the European Union. Moscow also wanted a veto on future Nato membership for Ukraine.

WHAT HAS UKRAINE LAID OUT FOR NEUTRALITY?

Ukraine’s delegation offered a detailed framework for a peace deal under which a neutral Ukraine’s security would be guaranteed by a group of third countries, including the US, Britain, France, Turkey, China, and Poland, in an arrangement similar to NATO’s “an attack on one is an attack on all” principle.

Sergiy Kyslytsya, permanent representative of Ukraine to the United Nations reads a copy of “What’s Wrong with Diplomacy” as Vassily Nebenzia, permanent representative of Russia to the United Nations, speaks during a meeting of the UN Security Council. (Photo: AP)

Ukraine said it would also be willing to hold talks over a 15-year period on the future of the Crimean Peninsula, seized by Russia in 2014.

ARE THERE COUNTRIES THAT HAVE A NEUTRAL STATUS?

Yes, there are.

At present, there are five European countries that have a neutral status, which includes Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, Finland, and Ireland.

HOW HAS RUSSIA REACTED?

After Zelenskyy’s hints of looking for a neutral status, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said Moscow has decided to “fundamentally … cut back military activity in the direction of Kyiv and Chernihiv” to “increase mutual trust and create conditions for further negotiations.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says seven people were killed in a missile strike on the regional government headquarters in the southern city of Mykolayiv. (Photo: AP)

The announcement was met with skepticism from the US and others. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia cannot be trusted. Although the signals from the talks are “positive,” they ”can’t silence explosions of Russian shells,” he said in a video address. He added that Zelenskyy said it was Ukrainian troops who forced Russia’s hand, adding that “we shouldn’t let down our guard” because the invading army still “has a great potential to continue attacks against our country.”

The US, meanwhile, says that the withdrawal is more like a strategic repositioning of forces outside of Kyiv.