Putin affirms Russia does not want to 'pick trouble' with Ukraine's new leadership

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks in St. Petersburg on April 24, 2019.

Speaking to reporters after a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Russia's Far East, President Putin said: "We want and are ready to restore full relations with Ukraine. However, we will not be able to do it unilaterally."

According to the Russian leader, Mr Zelensky's victory over incumbent President Petro Poroshenko shows that Mr Poroshenko's policies have been a "complete failure" and that the new Ukrainian leader needs to understand this. President Putin affirmed that Moscow will cooperate with the new Ukrainian President if Mr Zelensky implements an international peace treaty on Eastern Ukraine.

Regarding a decree to simplify the procedure for obtaining Russian passports for residents of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine, President Putin asserted that there was nothing wrong with the decision and that it was no different from what some European Union (EU) countries were doing. He cited Poland, Romania and Hungary as examples, which also issued passports to their citizens abroad. Therefore, he said that this was normal practice and was surprised that Kiev strongly opposed this decision of Russia.

A day earlier, President Putin signed a decree to simplify the procedure for obtaining a Russian passport for residents of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine. Accordingly, people living in these regions will now be able to receive a Russian passport within three months of submitting their visa application. Kiev immediately criticized Russia's decision, saying it was an act of interference in Ukraine's internal affairs. Ukrainian President-elect Volodymyr Zelenskiy has called for further international sanctions against Russia following Moscow's move. Meanwhile, Germany and France also expressed opposition to Moscow's decision, saying it seriously affects the Minsk peace agreements.

For his part, President Putin declared that it was unacceptable that residents living in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk Republics in the Donbass region did not have any rights, but affirmed that Moscow did not want to "cause trouble" with the new leadership of Ukraine.

Over the years, the parties involved in the conflict in the Donbass region have signed the Minsk peace agreements aimed at a ceasefire in the region. As members of the Normandy Four, Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine have participated in supporting the negotiation process to implement the ceasefire in Donbass. However, the government army and gunmen in this area have continuously accused each other of violating the ceasefire. According to statistics, since the conflict broke out in eastern Ukraine in April 2014, more than 10,000 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee their homes.