Putin likely to accept USA's proposal for Ukraine ceasefire

Russia may demand an end to military aid to Ukraine as one of the key conditions for a ceasefire, Bloomberg reports, citing sources.

Photo: en.kremlin.ru by The Presidential Press and Information Office, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Vladimir Putin

The Kremlin may also demand a halt to arms deliveries to Ukraine as a condition for a ceasefire, the agency said with reference to a source.

The Russian side has not yet held talks with its American counterparts regarding the agreements reached with Ukraine in Jeddah. Reports indicate that Russia does not fully agree with all the terms at this stage and is demanding revisions to the ceasefire conditions.

On February 27, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Moscow never refused to resolve the Ukrainian crisis through peaceful means. However, he emphasized that the root causes of the conflict must be addressed first, after which a hypothetical ceasefire could lead to a full-fledged peace agreement.

If Russia Says No, It Will Tell Us a Lot

If Russia rejects the proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine, it will be very telling, according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as reported by Reuters.

"If Russia says 'no,' then obviously we will have to examine everything and determine their true intentions. I believe that if they refuse, it will tell us a lot about their goals and mindset," the head of the US State Department noted.

At the same time, Rubio emphasized that Washington is eagerly awaiting Moscow's response and is "strongly urging consideration of a complete halt to hostilities."

On March 11, high-level delegations from Ukraine and the US held talks in Saudi Arabia. The main outcome of the meeting was Kyiv's agreement to accept Washington's proposal for a temporary 30-day ceasefire, which could be extended by mutual agreement of the parties.

Putin may accept 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin may agree to the proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine, but only if Moscow’s conditions are included in the agreement, Bloomberg reports, citing sources.

"While the Russian leader will probably agree to eventual truce terms with Ukraine, he wants to make sure his own conditions are included beforehand, according to a person familiar with the Kremlin’s thinking," the agency reports.

According to sources, Russia does not fully agree with all the points of the proposal discussed in Jeddah, so the Russian side will demand a revision of the agreement terms.

On January 24, Putin stated that Russia has always expressed its willingness to negotiate a resolution to the conflict in Ukraine. Additionally, the head of state emphasized that any resolution must lead to long-term peace rather than a short respite.

Zelensky draws red line for Ukraine

Recognizing the loss of territories is a "red line" for Ukraine in the process of resolving the conflict with Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated, as reported in a live broadcast by the Ukrainian media outlet Hromadske on its YouTube channel.

"We will not recognize any occupied territories [referring to the annexation of the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, as well as the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, by Russia]. That is a fact. (...) This is the most important red line," Zelensky said.

During his speech following Ukraine-US negotiations in Saudi Arabia, Zelensky reaffirmed Ukraine’s unwillingness to discuss territorial concessions to Russia. According to him, "no one in Ukraine will forget" the armed conflict over these territories. The president also stated that any potential renunciation of Ukrainian territory would be a violation of the country's constitution.

At the same time, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier that Kyiv would have to cede territory as part of any peace agreement, The New York Times reported.

"It will be very difficult for Ukraine to force the Russians to return to where they were in 2014 within a reasonable timeframe," he stated.

According to Rubio, both Ukraine and Russia must be prepared to make "tough compromises" to resolve the conflict.

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Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000 and again from 2008 to 2012. He is the longest-serving Russian president since the independence of Russia from the Soviet Union. Putin worked as a KGB foreign intelligence officer for 16 years, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He resigned in 1991 to begin a political career in Saint Petersburg. In 1996, he moved to Moscow to join the administration of President Boris Yeltsin. He briefly served as the director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and then as secretary of the Security Council of Russia before being appointed prime minister in August 1999. Following Yeltsin's resignation, Putin became acting president and, less than four months later, was elected to his first term as president. He was reelected in 2004. Due to constitutional limitations of two consecutive presidential terms, Putin served as prime minister again from 2008 to 2012 under Dmitry Medvedev. He returned to the presidency in 2012, following an election marked by allegations of fraud and protests, and was reelected in 2018.