Putin invited Trump to hold a referendum on the status of Donbass

Russian President Vladimir Putin at a summit in Helsinki invited US leader Donald Trump to hold a referendum on the status of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (the People’s Republic of Donetsk and the People’s Republic of Lugansk). Putin told this to Russian diplomats three days after the summit, reports Bloomberg referring to the interlocutors present at the meeting. On Thursday, July 19, Putin met with Russian ambassadors in foreign countries. Part of the meeting was of a closed-door meeting. Putin suggested holding a referendum under the auspices of international observers, told the interlocutors of the agency, who were present at the closed part of the meeting. Sources do not give other details. The conflict in the east of Ukraine was called among the topics discussed at the meeting of Putin and Trump, but at the final press conference the proposal for a referendum was not announced. As noted by Bloomberg sources, Trump asked time to think about Moscow’s proposal and not yet announce it publicly. The White House could not comment on this information promptly. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that at the meeting between Putin and Trump “some new ideas were discussed,” but they will “be worked through”. Putin not for the first time tells the third parties details of closed negotiations. So, in April 2015, Forbes magazine learned that at a closed meeting with the administrative board of the RUIE, the president told the business that Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko offered him “to take Donbas” to Russia. According to one source, Putin told entrepreneurs about his dialogue with Poroshenko: “He told me directly: “Take the Donbass.” I answered him: “Are you crazy? I do not need Donbass. If you do not need it, then declare its independence.”” Poroshenko, according to the Russian president, said that the Ukrainian authorities cannot do this. Then the Ukrainian authorities should pay the population of Donbass pensions, allowances and restore the banking system, Putin demanded. Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine in May 2014 held referenda and on its basis announced their independence from Kyiv. The United States and the European Union found the formation of the People’s Democratic Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk illegal, Ukraine called the referenda held a farce. Russia, in turn, stated that it “respects” the results of voting by residents of Donbass. In 2017, the former president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych proposed to hold a referendum on the status of Donbass in the event of Kyiv’s failure to comply with the Minsk agreements. He stated this in an open letter to the leaders of Poland, France, Germany, the United States and Russia. He also suggested including representatives of the Donbass in the Normandy format talks.