Putin Shows 'Signed Peace Agreement' with Ukraine

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Facts

  • Footage from last weekend's meeting between Vladimir Putin and African leaders shows the Russian president displaying an alleged peace treaty between Russia and Ukraine which he says was signed during a peacekeeping negotiation in Turkey in the spring of 2022.1
  • Putin displayed the document after the delegation of senior African officials — led by South African Pres. Cyril Ramaphosa — traveled to St. Petersburg on Saturday, having been in Kyiv the day before. The delegation was the latest attempt at seeking to promote Russia-Ukraine peace talks, endeavors so far attempted by Turkey and China without any apparent signs of success.2
  • After showing the document, Putin asked the African delegation, "Where are the guarantees that they [Ukraine] will not renounce any other agreements in the future?" He claimed that after Russia last year agreed to withdraw from the outskirts of Kyiv as a measure of goodwill, Ukraine went on to disregard the agreement and threw it in the "garbage of history."1
  • Ukraine has not commented on Putin's remarks. However, multiple reports suggest that Russia and Ukraine did reach a preliminary agreement. A Foreign Affairs article from last year reads, "In April 2022, Russian and Ukrainian negotiators appeared to have tentatively agreed on the outlines of a negotiated interim settlement."3
  • Additionally, last May, the Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda, citing sources in Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy's "inner circle," reported that during a surprise visit from then-British PM Boris Johnson in April, Johnson came with "two simple messages" for Kyiv. The first was that Putin is a "war criminal"; he should be pressured, not negotiated with. And the second is that Ukraine can sign agreements with the West instead of Russia.4
  • Meanwhile, on Sunday, a statement from the office of the South African president said that the two-day working visit to Russia and Ukraine had paved the ground for a renewed peace process. "The proposal presented by African leaders on a mission to Ukraine and Russia has created a foundation for future engagements that will contribute to a road to peace and resolution to the devastating conflict," the statement read.5

Sources: 1WION, 2Euronews, 3Scheerpost, 4Common Dreams, and 5TASS.

Narratives

  • Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by WION. As Putin said, Russia was never opposed to holding negotiations. Such talks, mediated by Turkey, were in fact held in the spring of last year. But after Ukraine signed a peace agreement and then, after Western pressure, turned around and threw it away, why should Russia again trust Ukraine?
  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Business Insider. Ukraine is a sovereign country that makes all its own decisions. The idea that Boris Johnson forced Ukraine's hand in how to proceed in peace negotiations is insane. He simply warned that the country that's already invaded Ukraine's borders can't be trusted on peace talks — much like trying to negotiate with a crocodile that's got your leg.

Predictions