Keith Kellogg, US President Donald Trump's Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia, has stated that Russia will not relinquish control over the occupied territories of Ukraine, though legally they are not part of the Russian Federation. He has pointed out that this creates a complex situation that will require further talks.

Source: Kellogg in an interview with Fox News

Details: Kellogg stated that Russia has de facto control over whole Luhansk Oblast, while its control over Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts is only partial.

"So the question is now, what does this look like? What does the territorial gains look like?" he emphasised.

Kellogg stressed that it is important to distinguish between de facto and de jure control in any scenario for ending the war. Russia is physically present in the occupied territories and does not plan to leave them, but legally these lands remain part of Ukraine.

Quote: "And then you have to go back to what we call either de facto or de jure. De facto meaning, okay, you physically occupy the territory, they're not going to move off it. But you don't go to de jure and say, you've totally annexed it, we give it to you as a part of Russia. Those are the discussions that are going to have to take place."

Details:Kellogg believes that to find a political solution it is necessary to understand the positions of both Ukraine and Russia and find a compromise that at least partially satisfies both sides.

Quote:"I think what you have to do is get what I would call term sheets. What do the Ukrainians want? What do the Russians want? Then you kind of merge them and say, OK, what is going to work for both sides? Do you get to an agreeable situation? I think that's going to be the important step, is what do they both want? What do they both not want? And by the way, neither side is going to be totally satisfied, because both sides are not going to get totally what they want."

Background: 

• In an interview with former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson, Witkoff effectively recognised the "referendums" that Russia held in the occupied territories of Ukraine in 2022.
• Witkoff stated that the largest obstacles to resolving the war started by Russia are "the so-called four regions: Donbas, Crimea, you know the names, Luhansk and there's two others".
• "They're Russian-speaking. There have been referendums where the overwhelming majority of the people have indicated that they want to be under Russian rule," he claimed. "I think that's the key issue in the conflict."
• Commenting on the interview, the European Commission reiterated its unwavering support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and stressed that the sham "referendums" held by Russia in the occupied territory of Ukraine had been wholly rigged.
• A Ukrainian MP demanded that Witkoff be removed from office after his shameful remarks regarding Ukraine.

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