The referendum on the status of the Donbass under the supervision of the OSCE and under the UN Charter can put the final point in the conflict – but with agreeing to this scenario, Trump actually recognizes that Ukraine is not a sovereign state, but only an instrument, and decisions must be made in the Russia-US format, political analyst Alexander Asafov says.
Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting in Helsinki on July 16 with US leader Donald Tramp suggested holding a referendum in Donbass to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine. According to Bloomberg, Putin spoke about this at a meeting with ambassadors and permanent representatives of Russia. A referendum under the auspices of international organizations, at which the residents of the Luhansk and Donetsk republics could finally be allowed to express their opinion on the status of their territories.
“Apparently, such a proposal can exist in reality. But to imagine now, how an idea can be implemented in practice, is quite difficult. In addition, Trump has not yet agreed finally, but having agreed to possibility of this scenario, he actually recognizes that Ukraine is not a sovereign state, but only an instrument, and decisions on resolving the current crisis should be made in the Russia-US format.
Of course, a referendum on the status of the Donbass under the control of the OSCE under the UN Charter can put the final point in the conflict. But here there are a lot of additional questions, for example, how to determine who will vote, taking into account the problem of a large number of displaced people and people who left the Donbas. And Kiev, most likely, does not recognize such a scenario even in the event of increased diplomatic pressure from the United States, “the interlocutor of the FBA” Economy Today “comments.
According to Alexander Asafov, the referendum on the status of the Donbass is only from options for resolving the crisis. Judging by other statements made by Putin, including within the framework of the summit, Moscow’s position on the implementation of the Minsk agreements remains unchanged, which Ukraine continues to oppose. The new proposal is also encouraging, but it’s too early to talk about its actual incarnation.
In addition, now that the proposal has become known to the general public, the situation has become more complicated. As noted in Bloomberg, Putin and Trump agreed not to publicly publicize this plan, so that the US president had the opportunity to think it over, so now the pressure on him and reproaches in the deals may intensify.
“As we remember, Congress earlier even demanded to interrogate the interpreter to open the” secret part “of the deal at the summit in Helsinki. A lot of rumors and assumptions have been created around the meeting between Putin and Trump, and they all have anti-Tramp character. It is absolutely obvious that any positive progress in the direction of the referendum in the NDP and the LNR raises the issue of recognition of the referendum in the Crimea at the level of the international community.
And if this referendum is recognized, in fact, in an automatic mode, all the ground for sanctions and related actions on international pressure on Russia is coming to naught. It’s a wonderful scenario for us, but Trump’s opponents in the American political class will not allow this, and will continue to use any of his contacts with Russia to strike him and his supporters’ positions in the midterm elections, “Asafov said.
At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities were concerned that right at the first full-fledged meeting with Putin Trump was ready to resolve two “Ukrainian” issues without even informing Kyiv about his plans. Ukraine even sent an official request to Washington with a request to clarify the statements made in Helsinki.
“Kiev is well aware that they are not participants in international politics. Despite all Poroshenko’s requests not to talk about Ukraine without Ukraine, she is given serious attention in the framework of the Russian-American dialogue, both in the Putin-Trump format and in the Surkov-Volker format.
The future fate of Ukraine is discussed without its direct participation, which is perceived very painfully in Kiev, so they are trying to pretend to be a member of a sovereign state and a big global policy. It turns out badly, but imitation of a full-fledged state with its political will and sovereign goals is the only possible strategy for Ukraine, “the political scientist sums up.