Advocate close to Putin endorses "annexation" of Ukraine
Behind Putin's proposed weapon peace agreement, insights from close ally Medvedchuk might provide some clarity. He advocates for the "total disarmament and de-nazification" of Ukraine and "reunification."
Viktor Medvedchuk, a longtime buddy of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has expressed support for extending the conflict against Ukraine. "Given Russia's security concerns, it's essential to carry out additional military actions to eliminate the neo-Nazi regime, attain total disarmament, and de-nazification," Medvedchuk expressed to TASS.
Losing his Ukrainian citizenship, Medvedchuk also represents the voice of the Ukrainians. "Ukrainians yearn for peace, whereas Selenskyj and his western puppeteers seek war, even if it means annihilating the Ukrainian people. The Ukrainian people must be liberated from this criminal Nazi regime," Medvedchuk asserted. Following the dismissal of Putin's peace proposal, the shared interests of Russia and the Ukrainian people demand the liberation of Odessa and other cities. Medvedchuk was detained in Ukraine on high treason charges, handed over to Russia in September 2022 as part of a prisoner exchange. Recently, accusations of propaganda operations against him in the West have surfaced.
Medvedchuk's statements hint at an ongoing societal process within Ukraine that will expose the true nature of Selenskyj's regime. "Therefore, he dreaded elections and seized power, for any subsequent power would undoubtedly convict him. He has done so much that any weighty government would have imprisoned him already if he hadn't had the spokesmanship and massive aid from the West, which he and his team actively exploit."
Medvedchuk perpetuates the Kremlin's narrative that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy undermined elections and, as a result, illegally maintains power. In fact, Ukraine's martial law and electoral code, enacted prior to Zelenskyy, permit the suspension of elections during martial law.
Ukraine considered "predominantly" on historically Russian lands
Beyond the alleged illegitimacy and pro-Nazi tendencies of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who lost multiple Jewish family members during the Holocaust, Medvedchuk also touched upon controversial historical assertions to justify the conflict. "I have continuously argued that Ukraine predominantly occupies historically Russian territory, so the reunion of the inhabitants of these territories with Russia is a justified historical process that has already begun and will continue." Since Selenskyj receives support from the West, "it's reasonable that the Ukrainian people are backed by Russia, as history has demonstrated many times."
Putin suggested conditions for a weapons truce and peace talks a few days ago. These stipulations include the complete withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia regions, and forsaking NATO membership. Chancellor Olaf Scholz and various Western politicians and analysts dismissed Putin's proposition as a "dictated peace."
