Ukraine is not going to sign a peace agreement similar to the one signed by Finland after the Winter War, which involved territorial concessions, Spanish news outlet El Diario quoted Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba as saying on Aug. 21.

The minister was referring to the Moscow Peace Treaty signed by Finland on March 12, 1940, according to which it transferred about 10% of its territory to the Soviet Union.

Ukraine is being transformed during the war and appreciates the support it has received in the fight against Russia, partly due to the fact that “the world has learned from (such) past mistakes,” the minister said.

Read also: NATO official backtracks on comment that Ukraine could join NATO after swapping land for peace

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Kuleba also hinted at differences with the conflicts in Georgia and Crimea, noting that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine included things that happened “for the first time” in the war, such as the supply of Western weapons, or the fact that the European Union recognized his country as a partner after years of “unnecessary and unfair doubts.”

“We have every opportunity to achieve terms of peace that are distinct from those of Crimea, Georgia, or Finland,” Kuleba said.

Earlier, on Aug. 15, Director of the Private Office of the NATO Secretary General Stian Jenssen said in comments to the media that Ukraine could conceivably become a NATO member in exchange for ceding parts of its sovereign territory to Russia.

A day later he said the comment had been made in error.

Read also: White House denies discussions about Ukraine’s joining NATO in exchange for ceding territory

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry quickly called such statements unacceptable and said that they only play into the hands of the aggressor, Russia.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has reiterated that Ukraine alone will decide when favorable conditions for peace talks have arisen after his subordinate, Stian Jenssen, had to retract a previous comment that Ukraine might have to swap territory for peace with Russia.

During his visit to Denmark on Aug. 20, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded to journalists’ questions about the exchange of Ukrainian territories for NATO membership.

“Exchanging territories? We’re ready to exchange Belgorod (Russian city and region) for our membership of NATO,” he quipped.

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