Vladimir Medinsky, Russia's lead negotiator in peace talks with Ukraine, said, on Wednesday, that Kiev has agreed in principle to become neutral. One of the reasons Moscow said it launched a military operation last month was the country's bid to join NATO.

Medinsky made his remarks a day after the parties met for a peace summit in Istanbul, Turkey. He stated that the Ukrainian team presented a draft plan outlining a future peace agreement.

“Yesterday, for the first time, the Ukrainian party announced, not only orally but also in written form, that it’s ready to fulfill a number of the most important conditions for building normal, and, hopefully, good-neighborly relations with Russia in the future,” he stressed.

He went on to say that the Kiev regime has carried out an open genocide against the residents of Donbass, adding that Russia had to stand up for tens and tens of thousands of its Russian citizens living there.

The top Russian diplomat revealed that the Kiev authorities declared that they are ready to negotiate with Russia and conveyed the provisions of a possible future agreement for the first time in all these years.

He highlighted that the agreement will include Kiev’s commitment to not joining NATO, fixation on Ukraine's bloc-free status; the renunciation of nuclear weapons, and an obligation to conduct troop exercises only with the consent of the guarantor states, which must include Russia.

Medinsky has also stressed the importance of agreeing upon this treaty at the highest level, adding that the negotiations are still ongoing.

He concluded by assuring that “Russia’s position regarding Crimea and Donbass remains the same.”