President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized a peace initiative put forward by Brazil and China as "destructive" in an interview with Brazilian outlet Metropoles published on Sept. 12.
"You either support the war, or you don't support the war. If you don't support it, then help us stop Russia," Zelensky said.
"(Should we) just give up our land, forget that they are killing our people? What is the compromise in that? That's why I think it's destructive. It's just a political statement."
Brazil and China pitched a six-point peace plan in May that called on both Russia and Ukraine to avoid "escalation of hostilities" and "provocations."
It came as a parallel plan to Ukraine's peace efforts based on Zelensky's 10-point peace formula, which included a global peace summit in Switzerland in June.
China did not attend the summit despite the invitation, while the Brazilian representative who was present did not sign the resulting communique. The document was primarily backed by Ukraine's traditional Western partners, showing that Ukraine had little success in engaging the Global South.
"How can you offer 'here is our initiative' without asking anything from us?" Zelensky asked, saying the plan lacked respect for Ukraine and its territorial integrity. The president added that he offered to discuss the proposals with Chinese and Brazilian leaders.
"Why did you suddenly decide that you should take Russia's side or be somewhere in the middle? In the middle of what?" Zelensky said, calling Russian President Vladimir Putin a murderer and saying that he himself must take steps toward ending the war.
The six-point plan from Brazil and China calls for:
- Non-escalation or provocations by either side.
- An international peace conference accepted by both Russia and Ukraine, and which includes "fair discussion" of all peace plans.
- An increase of humanitarian assistance to "prevent a humanitarian crisis on a larger scale," as well as an exchange of POWs, and no attacks on civilians.
- All possible efforts must be made to "prevent nuclear proliferation and avoid nuclear crisis."
- Attacks on nuclear power plants and other peaceful nuclear facilities "must be opposed."
- Enhanced international cooperation on several issues in order to "protect the stability of global industrial and supply chains."
Moscow has previously said it would accept Brazil and China as intermediaries for possible peace talks. The two countries refused to publicly take sides in the war, with China quietly serving as Russia's key economic lifeline and a source of dual-use goods.
There have been no direct negotiations between Ukraine and Russia since early 2022.
Moscow named Ukraine giving up on occupied territory and ceding additional ground as conditions for talks. In turn, Kyiv's 10-point peace formula includes a complete Russian withdrawal from the country.
Chris York
