The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky is now open to negotiations with Moscow. This was not always the case. The reason for this change of opinion is murky.
After two and a half years of war, a possible path to a negotiated solution is emerging. “Zelensky will be forced to hold a referendum. I don’t think he can make such painful and important agreements on his own without the legitimacy of the people,” said Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko to the Italian “Corriere della Sera”. President Volodymyr Zelensky himself had suggested a referendum in the first weeks of the war. Later, however, he signed a decree that ruled out negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Now, however, Zelensky has backed away from this position. “We will talk to those who decide everything in Russia,” he said in an interview with the BBC.
The change in rhetoric comes against the backdrop of the worsening military situation: after the massive missile attacks on infrastructure, the country’s heat and electricity supply is at risk next winter. At the front, especially in Donbas, Ukrainians are losing territory to the attacking Russians every day.
The questions about Ukraine’s territorial cessions
This is not without consequences for the mood of the population. In a survey at the end of June, 44 percent were in favor of starting peace talks, while 35 percent were against it. Ukrainians find it more difficult to accept the ceding of territory: only just under ten percent would agree to the current front line being maintained, and a quarter would agree to a return to the situation before the attack. Half consider a return to the 1991 borders, including Donbas and Crimea, to be essential. In recent interviews, Zelensky himself no longer mentions this as a precondition for negotiations with Russia.
However, the Kiev political scientist Volodymyr Fesenko recalls in an interview with star that a basic condition for a successful negotiated solution is “military parity” at the front: “Putin is only forced to compromise by the realization that he cannot win the war against Ukraine.”
Military parity also includes strengthening missile defense: At the end of July, Germany delivered the third Patriot system. Zelensky welcomed it as a “win for Ukraine.”
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
