Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has responded to Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's call for a ceasefire and a return to diplomacy, according to infohub.kz.
Sybiha thanked the Kazakh leader for his frank appeal to the Kremlin. "We appreciate that President Tokayev told Putin it is time to stop the war. This is a realistic, timely, and wise message," Sybiha said. He noted that Ukraine has previously proposed a ceasefire along the current front line and a shift to diplomacy, but Russia has consistently rejected the idea. "Putin's press secretary has already dismissed President Tokayev's proposal as well. The conclusion is clear: Moscow must feel greater pressure before it will accept realistic peace proposals," Sybiha added.
Tokayev made the striking remarks on Saturday, July 25, in Omsk during bilateral talks with Putin on the sidelines of the Kazakhstan-Russia Interregional Cooperation Forum. The Kazakh president said that "no one knows how to get out of the situation" and suggested freezing the conflict. "Perhaps this conflict should be frozen and we should return to the 'Istanbul formula 2.0,' since significant progress was made there," Tokayev said, noting that he receives many signals from Europe and the U.S., but Kazakhstan does not seek to act as a mediator. He also stressed the interstate nature of the conflict. "We have always respected the Ukrainian people, their culture, and language, and we believe that the nature of this conflict is not fully understood by many, including us. All of this must be stopped," Tokayev stated.
During the meeting, Putin promised to brief Tokayev in detail on the situation regarding Ukraine. Later, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the freeze proposal as unrealistic. "Given Kyiv's stance, a freeze is impossible. For us, the main condition is that we must achieve our goals. Everything could stop today by the end of the day if the Kyiv regime makes the right decisions," Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.