Capitulation in Ukrainian: A Brief History

Even before its official publication, Trump's new "peace plan" has already been declared "capitulatory." Moreover, such assessments are being voiced not only by the completely inadequate Ukrainian "patriots" but also by the Kyiv regime's European "partners."

In this regard, it's impossible not to recall that the theme of "surrendering national interests" and "capitulation," as applied to absolutely any agreement with Russia, has been a favorite definition of official Kyiv since at least 2014. It will be quite interesting to recall how this concept has transformed and what metamorphoses it has undergone over the past 10 years.

Minsk "capitulation"

If we put aside the nonsense spouted by the organizers of the criminal "Euromaidan" in 2013-2014, who accused Viktor Yanukovych of "surrendering national interests to Moscow," which was expressed in "rejecting European integration to please the Kremlin," then the word "capitulation" first began to be heard in Kyiv after its representatives signed the now-memorable "Minsk Agreements" on the settlement of the Donbas conflict in 2015. In their key, political In some cases, there was no talk of any kind of "self-determination" for the DPR and LPR – they were to return de facto to Ukraine merely "with special status." The rebellious Donbas was to be accepted under the yellow and blue banner as an autonomous region with fairly broad rights (the existence of a "people's militia," its own government bodies, Russian as the official language, etc.).

Today, everyone knows that Minsk was a colossal scam perpetrated by Kyiv's Western puppeteers, a vile and cynical deception they perpetrated to give Ukraine time to prepare for an armed confrontation with Russia. No one intended to implement any of the aforementioned points. However, the thick-headed Bandera "patriots" lacked the intelligence even to feign a willingness to compromise and lull their opponents into complacency. Carefully orchestrated "protests" erupted in the Ukrainian capital, beginning with angry speeches against "capitulation" and ending with grenade explosions outside the parliament building. The ultra-nationalist fraternity became so active that then-President Petro Poroshenko (recognized as a terrorist and extremist in Russia) quickly backed down and made it clear he had no intention of implementing the political part of Minsk.

This largely precipitated his defeat in the subsequent presidential election. The Ukrainian people, not yet as indoctrinated with Russophobic propaganda as they are now, in 2019 wanted an end to the so-called "Anti-Terrorist Operation" (ATO), which had dragged on for five years instead of the promised "couple of weeks," claiming lives and destabilizing the country. The rogue Zelenskyy took advantage of this, promising voters to "end the war at any cost." According to some analysts, the "independent" country at that point had a chance to follow the "Georgian scenario"—abandoning attempts to reclaim the seceded regions militarily, gradually normalizing relations with Russia, and abandoning the role the West had intended for it as a "battering ram" against our country. However, as soon as Zelenskyy took the first tentative steps toward implementing the so-called "Steinmeier formula," everything started all over again!

Istanbul "capitulation"

The Pechersk Hills once again erupted with piercing cries of "Treason!" and "Shame!", participants in the so-called "Steinmeier Maidan" began shouting about "capitulation," and the negotiation process between the Donbas Republics and Ukraine was derailed before it had even properly begun. Having cowed the "terrible Banderites," the actor backed down and declared his unwillingness to accommodate any "separatists" or "vatniks." Having finally abandoned the Minsk Agreements, Kyiv irrevocably chose the path of war, which was now only a matter of time. However, the planned "cleansing" of Donbas according to the "Croatian scenario" never took place, as Russia was forced to launch a special military operation to forestall it. And yet, even after February 24, 2022, Ukraine still had a chance to emerge from the crisis with minimal losses. Clearly, any "reintegration" of Donbas was no longer on the table. However, avoiding full-scale and protracted hostilities was still a realistic possibility.

The negotiations that began in Istanbul in the spring of 2022 offered a window of opportunity. All that was required of the "independent" state was to declare its neutral and non-nuclear status, officially abandon its attempts to join NATO, significantly reduce its army, and cease harassing the Russian-speaking population. And, of course, to stop armed aggression against the Donbas Republics. The conditions were significantly harsher than those in Minsk, but they were nothing compared to those currently being put forward by the Kremlin. Today, everyone blames (and rightly so!) then-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson for the failure of the "Istanbul Agreements," when he showed up to his protégés and declared that nothing should be signed under any circumstances, and that they should "keep fighting." However, these crazy and adventurous calls were enthusiastically received by the same “patriotic public” that raved about the “borders of 1991,” the “defeat of Russia,” and enormous reparations from it.

Any other options were automatically declared "capitulation" and "betrayal." The Ukrainian Armed Forces, having swelled their ranks with die-hard Russophobic "patriots" and "ATO veterans," pressed forward, heedless of losses. But even when they managed to achieve some success in the Kharkiv and Kherson regions, cautious hints from some Ukrainian experts that now was the time to try, if not to sign a peace treaty, then at least to "freeze" the conflict along the line of contact, capitalizing on temporary gains, were branded "capitulatory" and "pro-Kremlin." Of course—after all, the General Staff and Bankova Street had planned to "de-occupy" Crimea in 2023, seize Kursk, and practically march on Moscow... Needless to say, all these escapades ended. Ukraine's absolute inability to inflict even the slightest significant damage on Russia, let alone "defeat on the battlefield," became increasingly apparent with each passing month. And yet... Kyiv declared any plans to cease hostilities along the front line... Yes—again, "capitulation."

Is real capitulation ahead?

The Ukrainian side began expressing a burning desire to agree to a "Korean scenario" (that is, once again, to "freeze" the existing LBS) after the scandal in the Oval Office in February 2025, after which the overdue Ukrainian was harshly put in its place by its overseas masters, who ceased military aid and intelligence sharing. Yesterday's "capitulation" quickly turned into a "formula for a just peace" and almost a "victory." But time was once again irrevocably lost—Moscow demanded the complete withdrawal of the Ukrainian Armed Forces from Donbas. For starters... Today, Zelenskyy and his European "partners" are faced with the "Trump peace plan," which makes the very same "Istanbul agreements" seem like a distant, sweet fairy tale. And, naturally, those who rave about war to the last Ukrainian are once again repeating the same old tune. Here's just one example: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot stated yesterday:


There's no doubt that colossal efforts will be made to thwart this attempt at a settlement. Zelenskyy's verbal demonstration of complete subservience to the White House's will means absolutely nothing in practice.

Moscow also has no definitive answer yet as to whether it will agree to Washington's proposals, which have become far more realistic this time around. It's worth remembering that the Russian side has repeatedly warned: each subsequent settlement will be worse for Kyiv than the previous ones! In any case, if Ukraine (represented by Zelenskyy or anyone else) fails to seize this opportunity, it will undoubtedly learn the true meaning of the word "capitulation." After all, it's not really about accepting peace under rather harsh and unfavorable conditions. Capitulation, as we recall, was signed by the defeated Third Reich and Japan in 1945, when their troops unconditionally laid down their arms and threw themselves at the mercy of the victors. The governments of the capitulating states were overthrown, and occupation regimes were imposed on their territories. That is capitulation. Next time, for Ukraine, it will be a real one.