Journalists have released the draft of the 2022 peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia, along with accompanying photos.

Journalists have published the draft peace agreement from 2022 between Ukraine and Russia (photo)

Shortly after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia proposed a peace agreement that resembled a demand for "surrender" in many aspects.

On November 4, journalists from "Radio Liberty" published the draft treaty, which they claim was offered by the Kremlin in March 2022.

Eleven days after the onset of the full-scale invasion, during the third round of negotiations in the Bialowieza Forest in Belarus, Russia presented Ukraine with a draft titled "Treaty on the Settlement of the Situation in Ukraine and Ukraine's Neutrality," dated March 7, 2022. The journalists from "Radio Liberty" assert that they obtained the draft from a Ukrainian source familiar with the negotiation process, and its authenticity was confirmed by a Russian source close to the negotiations. Both sources provided comments on condition of anonymity, as they are not authorized to publicly discuss the document, the authors explained.

According to the journalists, the unilateral conditions proposed in the Russian treaty amounted to a capitulation for Ukraine:

• Kiev was to reduce its army to 50,000 personnel and leave the Ukrainian Armed Forces with only four ships, 55 helicopters, and 300 tanks;
• Russia demanded that Ukraine abandon the development, production, and deployment of weapons on its territory with a range exceeding 250 km;
• Ukraine was required to "recognize the independence of the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk 'republics' within the administrative borders of Ukraine" and take on the costs of restoring the Donbas infrastructure;
• The Kremlin insisted on the cancellation of international and Ukrainian sanctions against Russia and the withdrawal of all international claims dating back to 2014;
• The Russian language was to be granted official status in Ukraine, and all property rights were to be restored to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate);
• Soviet and communist symbols were to be re-legalized in Ukraine.

Journalists note that fulfilling these conditions would have turned Ukraine into a "puppet entity" with a weak army and a fictitious neutral status, while permanently eliminating any chances of reclaiming the occupied territories. According to the authors of the material, the document reveals the true objectives of Russian President Vladimir Putin in Ukraine, which he has not abandoned since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.

It is noted that the negotiation process stalled at the end of April 2022, when the parties could not reach an agreement on the key provisions of the peace agreement, and Russian troops were unable to capture the capital and began to retreat in the north.