Putin Advisor: "Ukraine May Disappear This Year... No Negotiations with EU"

"Negotiations Only If Sovereignty Over Occupied Ukrainian Territories Is Recognized"
"EU Cannot Represent Member States... Will Negotiate With the United States"

Nikolai Patrushev, a close aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, claimed that Ukraine could disappear this year.

In an interview with the Russian daily newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda on the 14th (local time), Patrushev said, "The neo-Nazi ideology and Russophobia are destroying the prosperous Ukrainian cities such as Kharkiv."

He added that Moldova could also either become part of another country or completely disappear due to the current government's anti-Russian policies. Both Ukraine and Moldova are former Soviet states, but with pro-Western regimes in power, they have become adversarial toward Russia.

Ukraine and Moldova are pursuing EU membership, and Ukraine also hopes to join NATO, the Western military alliance.

Regarding Moldova, Patrushev warned, "Discrimination against Russians must stop," and said, "The authorities of that country are leading their nation into crisis through imprudent actions."

He also emphasized that Russia would only accept peace negotiations with Ukraine if its sovereignty over the Crimean Peninsula and the Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, which Russia occupies, is recognized.

Patrushev is one of President Putin's closest aides. He served as Secretary of the Security Council from 2008 until last May, when President Putin reassigned him to the role of presidential aide in charge of shipbuilding during the fifth term cabinet reshuffle.

Patrushev also stated, "I respect the remarks of then U.S. President-elect Donald Trump regarding the resolution of the Ukraine conflict," and said, "In talks about Ukraine, Russia does not need to negotiate with Western countries other than the United States."

He drew a clear line, saying there is nothing to discuss with the United Kingdom or the European Union (EU). Patrushev criticized, "In the case of the EU, it cannot represent several member states that take a balanced stance toward Russia."