"Absurd" peace plan for Ukraine disturbs political elites

A peace plan offered by Ukrainian MP Andrei Artemenko surfaced in the New York Times on Sunday, Feb. 19. The plan, which includes Russian troop withdrawals from Donbas and a Ukrainian referendum on leasing Crimea to Russia, has been derided by Moscow. On Monday, Feb. 20, TASS news agency quoted Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying, “How can Russia take its own region on lease? The very formulation of the issue is quite absurd.” Artemenko had claimed that he received Kremlin support for the plan.

The New York Times article claims that Artemenko gave the plan to the Trump administration through connections with then-National Security Advisor Mike Flynn, and without the knowledge of the Ukrainian government. Kyiv has also derided the plan, with the New York Times quoting Ukrainian ambassador to Washington Valeriy Chaly as saying that Artemenko “is not entitled to present any alternative peace plans on behalf of Ukraine to any foreign government, including the U.S. administration.”

On Monday, Feb. 20, Artemenko was removed from Ukraine’s Radical Party parliamentary faction and ordered to give up his MP mandate as party leader Oleh Lyashko has filed a request for his investigation by the Security Service of Ukraine.

James Hydzik: The absurdity of the plan and the manner in which it was delivered to Washington points to the possibility that Artemenko was used to embarrass the Trump administration and divert attention from the results of the Munich Security Conference, which did not go well for Moscow. Lyashko has pointed to possible sources for this plan, but both Ukrainian and Russian originators are possible. If this is the case, then it is a reminder that like with the fighting in the ATO zone, the Kremlin can foment an issue to keep others reacting to situations instead of dealing with more substantial problems.