According to Russian sources seen by Reuters, Vladimir Putin “can fight as long as necessary, but he is also prepared to freeze the war.” The agency’s interlocutors claim that the Russian President is ready to agree to a negotiated ceasefire on the current front line, and is not ready to announce another mobilization. But Reuters confirms that “the possibility of a ceasefire now seems remote.”
Reuters journalists found five Russian sources: Russian President Vladimir Putin has told his advisers that he has no plans for NATO territory. According to four of these sources, the Russian leader is ready to end the war in Ukraine by negotiating a ceasefire that takes into account the current frontline. But the interlocutors added that Putin is ready to continue fighting if he does not receive a response from Ukraine and Western countries.
Those interviewed by Reuters spoke anonymously due to the sensitivity of the matter.
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A senior aide to the Russian president, “who has knowledge of high-level talks in the Kremlin,” told Reuters, “Putin can fight as much as it takes, but he is also ready for a ceasefire and a freeze on the war.” .
Russian sources: Putin “expressed his frustration” at “the exclusion of talks”
According to three of the sources cited by the agency, Vladimir Putin “expressed his frustration” to a small group of advisers regarding – in his view – “Western-backed attempts to obstruct negotiations and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to rule out talks.”
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Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in response to Reuters’ questions that Putin has repeatedly made it clear that Russia is open to dialogue to achieve his goals. He stated that the country did not want “eternal war.” The Ministries of Defense and Foreign Affairs did not respond to journalists’ questions.
Russian President Vladimir PutinEPA/Mikhail Metzel/Sputnik/Kremlin, mandatory credit
According to Reuters sources, Vladimir Putin, who was elected for another term in March, wants to take advantage of the current “dynamics” in Russia and forget about the war. Two of the agency’s interlocutors said that, according to the Russian leader, progress in the war so far was enough to “sell victory to the Russian people.” Reuters also reports that economist Andrei Belousov has been appointed as the new defense minister, which some analysts interpreted as “putting the Russian economy in a perpetual state of war in order to win the protracted conflict.”
Reuters: The ceasefire in Ukraine seems far away
Some sources also confirmed that Vladimir Putin realizes that achieving more stunning military successes will require another national mobilization, which he does not want. One interviewee stated that after the mobilization in September 2022, the president’s popularity declined. Reuters also reports that as a result of this decision “hundreds of thousands of military-age men” left the country.
Dmitry Peskov said, “Russia does not need mobilization, and instead is recruiting volunteers for the armed forces.”
Reuters estimates that “the prospect of a ceasefire or even peace talks now seems remote.” Journalists report that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky repeatedly refused to see peace on Russia’s terms, and also announced the restoration of lost territories, including the Crimean Peninsula, which it annexed in 2014. In 2022, he signed a decree stating that any talks with Putin are “impossible.”
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One Reuters interviewer estimated that as long as Zelensky remains in power, no agreement will be reached — unless Russia bypasses Ukraine and signs a deal with the United States. But US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told reporters in Kiev last week that he did not believe Putin was interested in serious negotiations.
Peace conference in Switzerland
In mid-June, on the initiative of Zelensky, a peace conference will be held in Switzerland dedicated to achieving peace in Ukraine. Russia was not invited to the event, but Ukraine and Switzerland expect Russia’s allies, including China, to attend.
Reuters highlights that on May 17, Putin, speaking in China, said that “Ukraine could use the Swiss talks to persuade a broader group of countries to support Zelensky’s demand for a complete Russian withdrawal, which Putin said would be an imposed condition rather than a serious peace.” Negotiation.” .
-We are ready to discuss. “We never refused,” the Russian president said in China.
In response to a question from Reuters journalists about this issue, a US State Department spokesman stressed that any peace initiative must respect “Ukraine’s territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders” and described Russia as the only obstacle to peace in Ukraine. A statement by the spokesman, quoted by the agency, said: “The Kremlin has not yet shown any significant interest in ending the war, but on the contrary.”
According to all five Russian sources told Reuters, Putin’s non-negotiable condition in a potential ceasefire agreement is to include all battlefield profits. – Putin will say that we won, that NATO attacked us and we retained our sovereignty, that we have a land corridor to Crimea, and this is true – said one of the agency’s interlocutors.
According to some Reuters sources, Putin, in the absence of a ceasefire, wants to occupy as much territory as possible, which increases pressure on Kiev. The aggressor forces control about 18 percent of Ukraine. One of Putin’s aides, quoted by Reuters, said that Russia will maintain pressure.
Main image source: EPA/Mikhail Metzel/Sputnik/Kremlin, mandatory credit
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