Kiev is advancing in the western Russian region of Kursk. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selensky hopes to gain a bargaining chip. But Kremlin chief Putin refuses to talk under pressure.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin does not want to negotiate with Kiev in view of the Ukrainian counter-offensive on Russian territory. “The president has said very clearly that after the attacks, or more precisely the invasion in the Kursk region, have begun, there can be no talk of negotiations,” said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Russian state television on the sidelines of Putin’s visit to Azerbaijan. Putin will also give an assessment of the situation shortly, Lavrov announced.
Reports of contacts between the warring parties established by intermediaries such as Qatar or Turkey are nothing more than rumors, Lavrov continued.
Ukraine, which has been defending itself against a Russian war of aggression for more than two years, launched a counter-offensive about two weeks ago and advanced into the western Russian region of Kursk. For the first time, Kiev has thus shifted the war to enemy territory. Russia continues to occupy large parts of eastern and southern Ukraine.
Before the Ukrainian counterattack, Putin had demanded that Kiev cede more territory as a prerequisite for peace negotiations. The current silence of the Russian president on the crisis affecting his own military is nothing new. Even in previous defeats of the Russian army, the Kremlin chief only spoke out after a long pause and in some cases after sitting out the crisis.
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.
