First Deputy Director of the New Europe Center Sergiy Solodkyy has said the resignation of Russian President Vladimir Putin's aide Vladislav Surkov and his replacement with Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Dmitry Kozak in matters concerning Ukraine will not change the Kremlin's aggressive policy since the new Donbas supervisor specializes in a "special approach" to conflict resolution.
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"So far, there is no reason to believe that Russia will somehow change its approach to Ukraine. Moreover, we could talk about Moscow's desire to further pursue its interests in Ukraine. Russia is not interested in resolving conflicts in the post-Soviet space. These conflicts are tools of influence for it. Kozak is the personification of the immutability of Russian approaches to conflict resolution. His name is closely linked to unsuccessful attempts to resolve the Transnistrian conflict on controversial Russian conditions," Solodkyy told the Segodnya newspaper.
The expert says the replacement of personalities does not always lead to a change in policy in interstate relations, especially when it comes to replacing a person in a state with an established system and clear interests.
