MOSCOW, Nov 13 Assistant to the President of the United States for National Security Jake Sullivan, during a recent meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, suggested thinking about «realistic» positions in negotiations with Russia, the Wall Street Journal writes, citing diplomats.
According to sources, Washington advised Kyiv to demonstrate openness to the very idea of dialogue.
Two European diplomats familiar with the discussions said Sullivan advised Zelenskiy's team to think about realistic demands and priorities in negotiations, including revisiting its stated goal… to regain control of Crimea. >According to the publication, a growing number of US officials believe that the coming weeks and months represent an opportunity for Russia and Ukraine to discuss possible negotiations. Washington believes that the onset of winter could be a turning point in the conflict.
With the prospect that Ukraine won't make much headway on the battlefield in the coming weeks, U.S. officials and some of their European counterparts have begun to ask when society will begin <…> to demand a peace settlement. br>
According to the publication, the United States and allies are concerned that due to the support of Kyiv, their stockpiles of weapons are being depleted too quickly.
«We are telling the Ukrainians that it is up to them to decide when to do this (start peace negotiations). But it would be a good idea to start them early,” one Western European diplomat is quoted as saying.
In recent days, Western media have been writing that the United States and its allies are pushing Ukraine into negotiations with Russia. After these messages, President Volodymyr Zelensky named the conditions for starting a dialogue. According to him, this is «the restoration of territorial integrity, respect for the UN Charter, compensation for all losses, punishment of every war criminal and guarantees that this will not happen again.» Russia by Vladimir Putin.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that Russia remains open to dialogue with Ukraine, but now it is not possible to continue it, since Kyiv has codified the non-continuation of any negotiations with the Russian side.
As the deputy head noted Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko, Russia has no preconditions for negotiations with Ukraine, but Kyiv must show goodwill. The official representative of the Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, stressed that Kyiv and its curators do not need negotiations, their goal is destructive.