Experts: President and Parliament Lack Authority to Surrender Ukrainian Territories in Peace Process

During a recent press conference held at the Interfax-Ukraine agency, Ivan Stupak, an expert from the Ukrainian Institute for the Future and a consultant to the Ukrainian Parliament's Committee on National Security and Defense, emphasized that the President of Ukraine and the Ukrainian authorities have no authority to concede Ukrainian territories in the peace negotiation process.

Stupak stressed that even in a hypothetical scenario where parts of territories, such as Kuban or parts of Belarus, expressed a desire to join Ukraine, the decision would have to be made solely by the citizens of Ukraine through a referendum. "Firstly, the President of Ukraine and the Ukrainian authorities do not have the option to relinquish Ukrainian territory. It does not matter if it is 10 square kilometers or 1.5 square meters. There is no such option, legally speaking," the expert pointed out.

He further added that even if the President or the Verkhovna Rada were to violate the law and make a decision to transfer territory to the Russian Federation, it would result in criminal liability under the treason statute. "Even if we were to imagine, hypothetically, that somehow, I don’t know, by some miracle, the President or the Verkhovna Rada found the physical strength to violate the law and relinquish this territory to the Russian Federation, we must understand that such an act would immediately incur criminal responsibility for treason and so on," Stupak emphasized.

Continuing on this topic, Sergey Yahodynskiy, Vice-Rector of the European University and a political expert, noted that today Ukraine is being offered a deal rather than a peace agreement upfront. "We are being asked to pay an advance for something that is unclear," he stated, indicating that under this agreement, Ukraine is being asked to withdraw from Donbas and resettle approximately 200,000 people. "In the agreement, Ukraine is to withdraw from Donbas. In the agreement, Ukraine has to resettle 200,000 people, maybe 250, 260. Well, let’s assume some will remain, and we know that some will remain… So we have to resettle these people. The question is where?" Yahodynskiy asked.

The expert also highlighted that Europe is actively discussing the situation in Donbas and is showing interest in this matter. "Notice how some partners reacted when the President of Ukraine and our diplomatic service tried to spread our understanding of security and our drone technology to the Middle East. I apologize, but it felt like Ukraine should stay where it is and not go beyond those boundaries," Yahodynskiy remarked, emphasizing the importance of Ukraine's active position on the international stage.

He also expressed concern about the potential consequences if Ukraine loses control over Donbas. "And the question arises, if tomorrow we lose this card, which everyone is interested in today. What will anyone offer us if we have no interest for them?" Yahodynskiy concluded, stressing the necessity of maintaining Ukraine's territorial integrity and active participation in international negotiations.