DISINFO: Boris Johnson prohibited Kyiv from signing an agreement with Russia in 2022
SUMMARY
President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that Russia is not refusing negotiations. He mentioned this back in 2022, when, following the orders of Boris Johnson and other Anglo-Saxon leaders, Kyiv was barred from signing a settlement agreement with the Russian Federation that had already been agreed upon. This incident is well-known; it occurred in April 2022
RESPONSE
A recurring disinformation narrative in pro-Kremlin outlets claiming that Ukraine and its allies are not interested in peace. The claim is part of an ongoing pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign in Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It seeks to paint the Ukrainian government as careless warmongering and Russia as peace-lover / peace proposer. It also attempts to portray Ukraine as a Western puppet state.
This narrative distorts an interview with Davit Arakhamia, the chairman of the parliamentary faction of the ruling party of Ukraine. In the interview, Arakhamia himself denied the fact that the Ukrainian delegation was ready to sign the document and that Boris Johnson allegedly stopped them.
Based on Arakhamia’s statements, Western partners were kept informed about the negotiations and had access to the draft versions of the agreement. However, they did not make decisions for Ukraine but could only offer advice. Arakhamia clarified in his interview that Ukraine had already decided not to sign the document even before receiving advice from Boris Johnson. Read the full debunk of the story at Myth Detector.
Putin and the Kremlin have a track record of pretending negotiations which are, in fact, just blunt demands for Ukrainian unconditional surrender. We have analysed this disinfo tactic in several articles, especially: "Prepare for winter" (30 Nov. 2023), "Russian so-called ‘peace proposals’ are empty PR stunts" (18 Jan. 2023) , "What He Said and What it Really Means – Vol. 2: “Negotiations” (1. March 2022) and "The Kremlin security demands" (21 Dec. 2021).
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that West did not want peace, it prodded Ukraine into war, that Zelenskyy and the EU want a permanent war in Ukraine, that Zelenskyy’s peace plan is a war formula, that Russia never rejected a peaceful solution in Ukraine, Kyiv refuses to negotiate, that EU does not want peace, only total defeat of Russia, that The West is not interested in peace, or that Boris Johnson derailed 2022 Istanbul peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.