Instituto de Estudios Políticos y Derecho Público "Dr. Humberto J. La Roche"
de la Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Políticas de la Universidad del Zulia
Maracaibo, Venezuela
Publicación cientíca en formato digital
ISSN-Versión Impresa 0798-1406 / ISSN-Versión on line 2542-3185
Depósito legal pp 197402ZU34
ppi 201502ZU4645
Vol.40 N° 75
2022
Recibido el 26/10/22 Aceptado el 28/11/22
ISSN 0798- 1406 ~ De pó si to le gal pp 198502ZU132
Cues tio nes Po lí ti cas
La re vis ta Cues tio nes Po lí ti cas, es una pu bli ca ción aus pi cia da por el Ins ti tu to
de Es tu dios Po lí ti cos y De re cho Pú bli co “Dr. Hum ber to J. La Ro che” (IEPDP) de la Fa-
cul tad de Cien cias Ju rí di cas y Po lí ti cas de la Uni ver si dad del Zu lia.
En tre sus ob je ti vos fi gu ran: con tri buir con el pro gre so cien tí fi co de las Cien cias
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ti ga do res; es ti mu lar la in ves ti ga ción en es tas áreas del sa ber; y pro pi ciar la pre sen ta-
ción, dis cu sión y con fron ta ción de las ideas y avan ces cien tí fi cos con com pro mi so so cial.
Cues tio nes Po lí ti cas apa re ce dos ve ces al año y pu bli ca tra ba jos ori gi na les con
avan ces o re sul ta dos de in ves ti ga ción en las áreas de Cien cia Po lí ti ca y De re cho Pú bli-
co, los cua les son so me ti dos a la con si de ra ción de ár bi tros ca li fi ca dos.
ESTA PU BLI CA CIÓN APA RE CE RE SE ÑA DA, EN TRE OTROS ÍN DI CES, EN
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nes Cien tí fi cas y Tec no ló gi cas Ve ne zo la nas del FO NA CIT, La tin dex.
Di rec to ra
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OIRALITH
M. C
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Vol. 40, Nº 75 (2022), 285-298
IEPDP-Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Políticas - LUZ
Peculiarities of the use of political
mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war:
principles of application and problems
of solution
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46398/cuestpol.4075.19
Daria Likarchuk *
Inna Kostyrya **
Oleg Koval ***
Viktoriia Datsenko ****
Vitaliy Kryvoshein *****
Abstract
The aim of the article was to investigate the principles of the
implementation of diplomatic policy and the problems of the
Russian-Ukrainian war settlement by applying the method of
mediation. The work is based on the use of both special methods
of political research and general scientic methods (analysis, synthesis,
induction, deduction). With the help of a prognostic method, an attempt
was made to characterize the short-term results of the introduction of
political mediation in the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war. The results
showed that mediation is a special negotiation technology for resolving
political conicts. The key tasks of mediation in political conict resolution
are neutralization of negative consequences of the confrontation, search for
dissonance between the parties and development of a strategy for further
actions, etc. It is concluded that, at this stage of the war, political mediation
to resolve the problems is possible only due to the military failures of the
Russian side and the Ukrainian collaborators supported by it.
* Candidate of Political Science Associate Professor at the Department of International Relations Kyiv
National University of Culture and Arts, Faculty of PR, journalism and cyber security, 01601, 36
Yevhen Konovalets Str., Kyiv, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1603-7601
** Doctor of Political Sciences, Professor, Head of the International Relations Department Kyiv
National University of Culture and Arts, Faculty of PR, Journalism and Cybersecurity, Department
of International Relations, 36 Yevhena Konovatsia st, 01133 Kyiv, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.
org/0000-0003-2654-8472
*** Candidate of Sciences in Public Administration, Associate Professor Regional Policy Department Taras
Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, 64/13, Volodymyrska Street, City of Kyiv, Ukraine, 01601.
ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9578-1759
**** Ph.D., Associate Professor of the Department of Philosophical and Political Sciences, Cherkasy State
Technological University bul. Shevchenka, 460, 18006, Cherkasy, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.
org/0000-0003-1510-6951
***** Doctor of Political Science, Professor, Head of the Department of Sociology Oles Honchar Dnipro
National University, Faculty of Social Sciences and International Relations, Department of Sociology,
72, Gagarin Ave, Dnipro, 49010, Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3380-7850
286
Daria Likarchuk, Inna Kostyrya, Oleg Koval, Viktoriia Datsenko y Vitaliy Kryvoshein
Peculiarities of the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war: principles of application
and problems of solution
Keywords: Keywords: Russian-Ukrainian war; political mediation;
conict resolution; geopolitics; applied political theory.
Peculiaridades del uso de la mediación política en
la guerra ruso-ucraniana: principios de aplicación y
problemas de solución
Resumen
El objetivo del artículo fue investigar los principios de la aplicación de
la política diplomática y los problemas de la resolución de la guerra ruso-
ucraniana mediante la aplicación del método de la mediación. El trabajo se
basa en el uso tanto de métodos especiales de investigación política como
de métodos cientícos generales (análisis, síntesis, inducción, deducción).
Con la ayuda de un método de pronóstico, se intentó caracterizar los
resultados a corto plazo de la introducción de los medios políticos en la
guerra ruso-ucraniana en curso. Los resultados mostraron que la mediación
es una tecnología especial de negociación para resolver conictos políticos.
Las tareas clave de la mediación en la resolución de conictos políticos son
la neutralización de las consecuencias negativas de la confrontación, la
búsqueda de disonancias entre las partes y el desarrollo de una estrategia
para acciones futuras, etc. Se concluye que, en esta fase de la guerra, la
mediación política para resolver los problemas sólo es posible debido a
los fracasos militares de la parte rusa y de los colaboradores ucranianos
apoyados por ella.
Palabras clave: guerra ruso-ucraniana; mediación política; resolución
de conictos; geopolítica; teoría política aplicada.
Introduction
The information society poses new challenges related to the rapid
dissemination and assimilation of various information. In some places, it
is not possible to absorb such a massive amount of information. This opens
ways for dierent uses of information. The Russian-Ukrainian hybrid
signicantly updated this problem and demonstrated that information can
be an eective weapon capable of paralyzing the will of society. At the same
time, in modern conditions, the regulation of war may be possible through
the prism of the mediation process.
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Vol. 40 Nº 75 (2022): 285-298
Note that mediation in its modern form emerged in the United States
in the mid-twentieth century, at which time the American legal system was
oriented to ensuring that political disputes were predominantly resolved
voluntarily. At the same time, although the mentioned phenomenon has
been known for a long time, it has not been studied in detail based on
political science. Studies of the term “mediation” in political publications
are markedly dierent and mostly reect only one side of a broad mediation
(Kyselova, 2017).
This only makes our research more relevant. Additional relevance
results from the fact that the study of this phenomenon began relatively
recently, while at the same time the media (including using the possibility
of the Internet) are nding more and more new ways to mediate.
1. Materials and methods
This study is built on the use of both general scientic and special
political research methods. The article is formed based on the use of general
logical research methods. In particular, analysis, synthesis, induction, and
deduction are used in the work. The method of analysis implies dividing the
subject of research into two parts to study them in depth.
In particular, our study is divided into the following issues:
characterization of the term mediation, the study of the development of
the Russian-Ukrainian war, analysis of the peculiarities of the use of the
phenomenon of mediation in this war, etc. At the same time, with the help
of synthesis, there is a holistic study of the previously highlighted parts. As
a result of using the axiomatic method of research, it was possible to move
from general scientic statements to specic practical conclusions. This
method was used in the study of the development of mediation in Ukraine
from 2014 to the present.
At the same time, with the help of the predictive method, an attempt was
made to characterize the approximate results of the introduction of political
mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war, which is ongoing. It should be
noted that these predictions are not used denitively, since it is dicult to
collect authentic information about the subsequent stages of the spread of
this war. Based on the method of modeling it was possible to present a set
of “ideal” circumstances in which a political solution to end the Russian-
Ukrainian war using mediation is possible. The study is also built on the use
of special political research methods.
The structural-functional method of research is based on the analysis of
society as a system of integrated parts seeking stability based on the choice
of a particular system of values. Consequently, the state of functioning of
288
Daria Likarchuk, Inna Kostyrya, Oleg Koval, Viktoriia Datsenko y Vitaliy Kryvoshein
Peculiarities of the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war: principles of application
and problems of solution
political mediation, as well as trends in its development can be investigated
through the analysis of values. In this case, we note that from the position
of the structural-functional method the system of values contributes to the
stability of society, then from the position of conictology – this system leads
to the formation of eective mechanisms for resolving various conicts.
Other interdisciplinary methods, in particular, retrospective,
synchronous, comparative methods of research, which serve as auxiliary
methods for the study of the problem of using political mediation in the
Russian-Ukrainian war, were also used in the work.
2. Literature Review
The study is based on an analysis of current political literature. In
particular, Park (2019) has characterized the functions of mediation in
addressing major political challenges. The study examines how the use
of news media can be used as a mediative tool. Piumatti et al, (2017)
investigated the impact of the phenomenon of mediation on political
interest. The problem of mediation has also been studied by Ukrainian
scholars. For example, Kyselova (2017) investigated the phenomenon
of mediation in Ukraine. Her work analyzes the key challenges for the
institutionalization of this process in Ukraine before and after 2014.
The researcher concludes that the low demand for mediation (as well as
its slow development) in Ukraine is caused by social and legal factors such
as general political instability and corrupt courts. Kyselova (2017) notes that
a lack of resources, political uncertainty, and inadequate judicial interest
have allowed the grassroots mediation community time to independently
consolidate and learn mediation lessons from other jurisdictions. At the
same time, although the current Russian-Ukrainian war in eastern Ukraine
has exacerbated political instability, it has still drawn international attention
to the phenomenon of mediation in Ukraine (Kyselova, 2017).
In addition, the study is based on the use of modern professional
literature on the Russian-Ukrainian war. For example, Kuzio (2021)
analyzed the development of the Russian-Ukrainian war based on the
analysis of contemporary political discourse in Ukraine. The work of
Bînă and Dragomir (2020) is important for this study. These scholars
have characterized directly the development of the Russian-Ukrainian
information war, considered the peculiarities of its dissemination, and the
main directions of its likely promotion.
At the same time, they also characterized the key propaganda mechanisms
used by Russian mass media (Bînă and Dragomir, 2020). For this gender,
theoretical works that have investigated the peculiarities of hybrid warfare
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are also important. Note that the information component is an important
part of hybrid wars. Manolea (2021) explained the term hybrid warfare and
characterized the main aspects of modern Russian-Ukrainian warfare.
Consequently, the problem of the Russian-Ukrainian war is popular
among modern scholars. However, the problem of the mediative component
of this war and the denition of its prognostic development based on the
use of mediation technology remains understudied.
3. Results
3.1. The Russian-Ukrainian war: a brief excursus to the problem
The Russian-Ukrainian war, which began in 2014, is the use of armed
force by Russia against the territorial integrity and independence of
Ukraine. It began with the Russian invasion of Crimea (February – March
2014). Later, the aggressor country occupied the peninsula. The next phase
of the war began with Russia’s invasion of Eastern Ukraine (April 2014).
Its characteristic feature was the creation of terrorist Luhansk and Donetsk
“people’s” republics. The situation in February 2014 conrmed that Russia’s
strategies had some success (Johnson, 2022).
In particular, Ukrainian society and government after the 2014
Euromaidan and the escape of President Yanukovych was somewhat
scattered and disorganized. Due to this situation, military force, and
information propaganda of the “Russian world”, the Russians managed to
quickly seize the Crimean Peninsula. Through a ctitious referendum, the
annexation of the territory was formalized (Ghilès, 2022).
It should be noted that due to the coordinated actions of the Ukrainian
military, society, and government, they were still able to stop Russian
troops in the Donbas region. Although such powerful cities as Donetsk and
Luhansk were occupied, many settlements in these regions remained under
Ukrainian control (Johnson, 2022). For Ukraine, the reaction of other
countries to Russia’s actions was signicant: international sanctions were
introduced against the aggressor country.
The ceasere between the parties established in 2015 lasted until
February 2022. After February 24, 2022, Russia began an active oensive
on Ukrainian territories, using terrorist methods of warfare, the destruction
of residential buildings, and the killing of civilians by the Russian military
(Martz, 2022). All these actions are prohibited by international law.
However, as practice shows, Russia does not pay attention to the adopted
international legal conventions and resolutions (Ishchuk, 2022). While
in 2021, 7% of Ukrainian territories were under Russian occupation, as
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Daria Likarchuk, Inna Kostyrya, Oleg Koval, Viktoriia Datsenko y Vitaliy Kryvoshein
Peculiarities of the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war: principles of application
and problems of solution
of 2022, the occupied area increased by 2.9 times. Thus, Crimea, parts of
Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia regions became
occupied. It should be noted that in March 2022, the Ukrainian military
liberated Kyiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, and Zhytomyr regions.
4. Mediation: Toward a Theoretical Rationale
Mediation is a special negotiation technique for resolving political
conict. It does not take place within the framework of regulation, basically,
it acts as a set of special techniques, skills, and abilities. Modern researchers
note that it emerged in the U.S. in the 20s-30s of the twentieth century
(Park, 2019). Later in the 1960s, the modern concept of mediation was
formed in the United States. Note that those times were marked by active
protests against the Vietnam War and the movement for human rights and
freedoms.
Yes, the ideas of these phenomena inuenced the fact that all sorts of
alternatives to the typical legal systems began to be introduced. In particular,
the Community Relations Service (CRS), established in 1969 under the U.S.
Department of Justice, has been notable. This institution helped to resolve
conicts of various kinds: national, racist conicts through mediation and
various negotiations. At the same time, in European countries, in particular,
in France, Germany, Great Britain, the theory of mediation began to be
introduced only in the late 1980s (Kobetska and Romanko, 2017).
Consequently, given the above-mentioned facts, we note that the
resolution of contemporary political conicts contains some characteristic
processes:
1. Acknowledgement by the parties to the conict (or purely by the
mediator) that there is political discord, conict, or war.
2. Mutual agreement to regulate the situation and nding eective
ways to do so
3. Finding out the causes of the war and identifying a possible mediator
4. The possibility of third-party intervention (in particular,
international organizations such as the EU, OSCE, or UN, etc.).
At the same time, based on the conict logical theory the structural
content of war includes the subjects of the collision (the parties) and the
subject of the collision - what the contradiction between the parties is based
on. At the same time, the development of such a situation usually includes
three stages:
1. Latent (hidden) - preparation for war.
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2. The stage of open confrontation started by one subject with methods
of using violence against the other side.
3. The stage of regulation of the situation, realized during the period of
interruption of interaction or the period of full understanding and
perception of this clash. Note that the resolution of political conicts
consists of several periods in which the subjects of the precondition
of the confrontation must recognize that there is a conict between
them and agree to resolve the situation (Morris, 2017). For this
purpose, it is possible to involve a third party for the purpose of
mediation.
The main objectives of political conict mediation are: 1. Neutralizing
the negative consequences of the confrontation. 2. Search for dissonance
between the parties. 3. Developing a strategy for future action. It is a project
that the parties to the political conict should accept as the main basis.
4. Preparing the parties to accept responsibility for future decisions in the
political arena. 5. Formation of a favorable model for the future resolution
of this clash. Obviously, political mediation acts as a multi-level technology
for resolving political conicts. At the same time, it takes place at several
levels: regional, national and international.
Consequently, mediation as a political practice is aimed at resolving
disputes, conicts, disputes based on communicative and dialogic tools.
We believe that it should be introduced permanently at the regional level,
taking into account the goal of stabilizing a certain political situation.
However, we believe that mediation is eective when: 1. when the parties
to the conict have found a common vision of the solution to the problem;
however, external control by international organizations is needed. 2. when
the parties have a dierent understanding of political and legal norms.
3. Mediation has a result when it is used to solve latent ethnic, political
conicts (Park, 2019).
It should be noted that in the history of mediation, cases of successful
mediation are quite frequent. Moreover, mediation was used without much
emphasis on methodology, i.e., mediation in negotiations was considered
quite practical (Piumatti et al., 2017). For example, the principles of
mediation and peacemaking have been used since the Crusades (Mereniuk
and Parshyn, 2021). At the same time, it is known that in the twelfth century
the Republic of Venice mediated the conict between the Holy Roman
Emperor Frederick Barbarossa and Pope Alexander III.
Venice not only provided its neutral territory for negotiations,
guaranteeing immunity to the delegations of its adversaries but also had a
hand in the formation of the agreed text of the peace treaty. In fact, the role
of mediators was repeatedly mentioned in the ocial document. Another
example of the use of mediation as a method of dispute resolution at the
international level was the creation of the Hanseatic League.
292
Daria Likarchuk, Inna Kostyrya, Oleg Koval, Viktoriia Datsenko y Vitaliy Kryvoshein
Peculiarities of the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war: principles of application
and problems of solution
In particular, individual Hanseatic structures (e.g., the “Steel Court”
in London) were kind of mediators in resolving trade disputes between
English and German merchants. Lübeck, as the presiding city of the
Hanseatic League, had the goal of deepening diplomatic eorts towards
ending conicts and disputes between members of the trade organization.
His powers, however, were never recognized. In more recent history, the
1978 Camp David Peace Accords between Israel and Egypt, mediated by
the United States, should be mentioned. Note that the Egyptian leader, A.
Sadat, took the initiative himself at the time to conclude a peace treaty with
ocial Tel Aviv. No other Arab country joined in this move.
5. Mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian War: Problems of
Settlement
The Russian-Ukrainian confrontation is dicult to resolve using the
method of political mediation. In particular, the situation is complicated
by the presence of so-called “gray zones” - the unrecognized Donetsk and
Luhansk People’s Republics, which formally emphasize their independence
but are in fact controlled by the Russian Federation (Materniak, 2020). As
of today, even the legal denition of the “gray zone” has not been denitively
established, so it is problematic to use it legally.
Studies on the creation of a more detailed concept are still underway,
although Ukrainian and Russian legal thought is on the margins of this
process, the main stages of the development of terminology take place in
European and American political science. Scientic interest in this issue is
connected with the fact that the wording “gray zone” constantly appears in
the strategic assessments of the intelligence services of the United States of
America.
It should be noted that the “gray zone” is more conceptual than a
geographical concept.
That is, modern experts in international relations and military aairs
use the term “gray zone” primarily when describing the situation during
the manifestations of hybrid warfare or other conicts, inherently close to
this type of confrontation (Mbah, 2022). Together with the “gray zone,”
the following concepts are often used: “active measures,” “new generation
war,” “political war,” etc. The term “gray zone” itself is based on a special
understanding of gray. The essence of this phenomenon is that the actions
of one state are recognized in the conict as “white”, and its opponents - as
“black”.
It is also conventionally possible to designate territories in which their
power is strong. At the same time, those areas that are outside the control of
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both forces or are partially controlled with varying success by both enemy
sides at once, are recognized as “gray”.
As dened by American military experts, a “gray zone” refers to a territory
for which the political and military situation is inherently ambiguous,
that is, these lands are neither theaters of military operations nor entirely
peaceful territory.
The concept of “gray zone” was introduced to the masses of political
analysts and experts by the leaders of the US special operations forces
in Congress during the report. Symptomatically, it referred to the new
challenges to the world community posed by the aggressive and controversial
actions of the Islamic State and the Russian Federation. The speech noted
that the capabilities of American military power and diplomacy must be
strengthened to meet today’s challenges.
Specically, the speech focused on the ability to adequately manage
conicts outside of the established peace-or-war matrix. According to
U.S. military analysts, the “gray zone” is characterized by intense political,
economic, informational, and military competition. It is very erce but
has not yet escalated into overt military clashes. Conicts of this kind
create additional problems in solving them because the legal framework
of international relations does not allow bringing to justice the real
perpetrators of potential military actions (Manolea, 2021).
The Russian trace in the creation of collaborative “governments”
in Donetsk and Luhansk is evident, but the resolution of this situation
through mediation is unlikely. It is obvious that the Russian side will press
the Donetsk and Lugansk card to the end, trying to resolve the conict
by force. It is also noticeable that the main goals of the Russian so-called
“special military operations” have not yet been achieved. Consequently,
expectations of a peaceful dialogue should be rejected for the moment.
At the same time, this does not mean that attempts at negotiations
involving third parties must be abandoned altogether. Mediation during the
Russo-Ukrainian war had certain promising directions. In particular, quite
a few representatives of European politicians visited Kyiv. Some of them
(e.g., French President Emmanuel Macron) were also actively negotiating
with Russian President Putin. Although the eectiveness of such a dialogue
remains problematic, attempts to reach an agreement, attempts to resolve
certain issues (even regarding the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from
Azovstal in Mariupol) are worthy of respect.
Obviously, such attempts will continue, but not always with positive
results. Political mediation has also had some success regarding the
establishment of prisoner exchanges. Although such information to date
is mostly classied, it can be assumed that the exchange of some Azovstal
defenders for Russian prisoners of war also took place with the mediation
of a third party.
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Daria Likarchuk, Inna Kostyrya, Oleg Koval, Viktoriia Datsenko y Vitaliy Kryvoshein
Peculiarities of the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war: principles of application
and problems of solution
We should also note that the opening of humanitarian corridors and care
for Ukrainians deported to Russia is also the responsibility of international
organizations, in particular the Red Cross. Although there are many
questions and criticisms of the work of this structure among Ukrainians
(for example, regarding the opening of an oce in Rostov-on-Don, Russia),
it is still necessary to recognize that sometimes political compromises have
to be made to work with authoritarian regimes. Helping Ukrainians in
Russia is also an example of the implementation of mediation principles in
the Russian-Ukrainian war.
6. Discussion
The lack of eectiveness of political dialogue in the conditions of an open
military clash or a genuine political conict, the replacement of productive
discussion by quasi-talks and shows lead to the unresolved basic issues and
deepening of the already existing crisis, the unfolding of its political, social,
economic consequences.
The development of the crisis of diplomatic relations rst of all
results in the stopping of functioning of institutes of international law or
their ineective work, and also in the breaking of established ties, in the
destruction of norms and rules of political life, in the deepening of instability
in the East of Europe.
Note that mediation and harmonization are related ways of inuencing
the international political environment, which are also combined at the
level of politics and art. It has been repeatedly pointed out that politics and
art are used together in communicating socially signicant information. As
far back as A. Pecked in his reections on the art of negotiation, written in
the 18th century, noted the peculiarities of diplomatic negotiations.
He believed that society should be taught the negotiation process as
an alternative to military action. This was to foster a culture of political
negotiation and communication in general.
The art of mediation is not only the skill of diplomatic negotiation or
dialogue at the international level.
It is also a process of processing the terms of certain discursive practices
between the parties to a military confrontation, whereby the interstate
confrontation is successfully resolved, the nal agreement to end the
conict is not imposed by either side of the war or by third countries but is
the result of voluntary equal discussion and the development of a common
strategy of action. Above all, the eectiveness of mediation is especially
tangible when both sides of the confrontation generally understand and
popularize this mode of political communication.
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For the contemporary Russo-Ukrainian war, the question of the balance
of political interests and forces, as well as the possibility of establishing
political negotiations, is extremely acute. It must anticipate mutual
guarantees and implementation of the agreements reached by the two sides
of the military conict.
Harmonization of international diplomatic relations, rst of all, can be
achieved by using modern ways of settling political conicts and organizing
political dialogue. First of all, dialogue and mediation in the course of
political communication (if professionally used and widely practiced) can
lead to a certain consensus. This consensus, against the background of a
renewed interstate dialogue, is the guarantee that a constructive version of
conict resolution and the resolution of contradictions is quite probable.
Eective mediation will make it possible to reach long-term agreements,
which for the parties to the conict will be important elements of long-term
neighborhood existence. Respect and willingness to fulll the terms of such
an agreement are based on the fact that the interests of both countries, their
sovereign will be taken into account and respected by their opponents and
third countries.
In practice, the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian
war of June 2022 has a slim chance of success. We are talking about the
language of ultimatums, especially on the part of the Russian federation.
The negotiation process, which began in the spring on the Ukrainian-
Belarusian border. And later continued in Turkey, did not bring concrete
solutions. All of the agreements reached led only to the resolution of urgent
issues.
In particular, on the exchange of prisoners and the expression of
proposals by the Ukrainian side. The Russian delegation continued to insist
on vague “deukrainization” and “denazication”. Then the negotiations
ocially ceased even at this level. As a result, above all, of military setbacks
in the north, Russian diplomacy in March announced the end of a “special
military operation” near Kyiv, Sumy, and Chernihiv. In early July, the
withdrawal of Russian troops from Snake Island was also announced as a
“goodwill gesture”.
According to the calculations of independent experts, only open sources
report about the loss of ships and equipment worth about 1 billion dollars.
In this case, it is estimated that the Russian losses of ships and equipment
are about $1 billion.
At this stage of the war, political mediation on the settlement of
problems is possible only as a result of the military failures of the Russian
side and the Ukrainian collaborators supported by it. So, it is impossible to
establish a dialogue between the two sides based on mutual understanding.
The experience of World War II may be applied when ghting will continue
296
Daria Likarchuk, Inna Kostyrya, Oleg Koval, Viktoriia Datsenko y Vitaliy Kryvoshein
Peculiarities of the use of political mediation in the Russian-Ukrainian war: principles of application
and problems of solution
until the nal victory of either side, and it is the winners who will dictate the
terms of the peace treaty.
Possible searches for a political mediator also look weak.
Russia obviously will not agree to mediation by the United States,
Britain, or the European Union. The Ukrainian side will not agree to other
mediators. Turkey’s attempts to take on the role of the main negotiator
with both sides have so far not yielded any noticeable results. So, on these
grounds, the political dialogue will not yet take place.
Conclusions
Thus, mediation in its modern forms as a method of conict resolution
appeared in the United States in the mid-twentieth century. The American
system of international law during this period turned to a method of conict
resolution which would consist of voluntary discussion and decision-
making. Note that the resolution of military conicts with the help of a
mediator in negotiations was used at least in the Middle Ages.
At the same time, it is only since the twentieth century that this method
began to be actively developed as an important one for diplomacy and
political science. Acknowledgement by the parties to the conict (or purely
by the mediator) that there is political discord, conict, or war. The use of
mediation requires an understanding by the parties that there is a conict
between them, a mutual agreement to regulate it, the establishment of the
causes of war and the identication of a likely mediator, and the possibility
of third-party intervention (e.g., the UN).
The article conrms that, unfortunately, it is almost impossible to
implement such a scenario to end the Russia-Ukraine war. Eective
mediation would allow long-term agreements to be reached. However, the
negotiation process, which began in the spring on the Ukrainian-Belarusian
border and later continued in Turkey, did not bring concrete solutions. As
a result, above all, of military failures in the northern direction, Russian
diplomacy in March announced the completion of a “special military
operation” near Kyiv, Sumy, and Chernihiv.
In early July, the withdrawal of Russian troops from Snake Island was
also announced as a “goodwill gesture”. Serpentine. At this stage of the war,
political mediation to resolve problems is possible only as a result of military
failures on the Russian side and the Ukrainian collaborators it supports.
Additionally, the situation is exacerbated by “gray zones” - unrecognized
pro-Russian governments in Donetsk and Luhansk. The regulation of such
issues has been little researched so far, but it is in eastern Ukraine that the
bloodiest battles take place.
297
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Vol. 40 Nº 75 (2022): 285-298
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Esta revista fue editada en formato digital y publicada
en diciembre de 2022, por el Fondo Editorial Serbiluz,
Universidad del Zulia. Maracaibo-Venezuela
Vol.40 Nº 75