Russain-Ukraine war: ‘If they want to negotiate, let them negotiate,’ Russian President Vladimir Putin has been quietly signaling that he is open to a ceasefire in Ukraine despite publicly refusing to back down from the ongoing conflict between the two nations, The New York Times reported.
The United Nations reported that more than 10,000 civilians have been killed and over 18,500 injured since the war began between Russia and Ukraine.
Former senior Russian officials close to the Kremlin and other American and international officials said Putin has been signaling since September that he is open to stopping the fight at the current boundary lines, as per NYT reports.
However, sources quoted by The Times warned that it could just be an attempt at “misdirection” or even Putin could change his mind if his troops regain momentum in Ukraine.
Also, it’s not yet clear whether Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would accept the deal or not as Russia still holds part of the country.
On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine and swiftly occupied vast regions of the nation. However, Russian forces were successfully forced to retreat from its northern regions by the strong pushback of Ukrainian forces. The battle lines have mostly not changed since October 2022, with Russia controlling portions of Ukraine’s east and south.
By early 2023, the Russian military was severely depleted as professional soldiers were replaced with draftees and prisoners, who proved to be weaker against the forces of Ukraine. A mere minority of Russians endorsed the war endeavor, and Putin was confronted with a humiliating defection from mercenary commander Yevgeny Prigozhin.
But Ukraine hasn’t been able to reclaim the lost ground. It isn’t getting much support in the West, and the Gaza War is taking up more of the world’s attention.
Zelenskyy visited Washington last week to meet with President Joe Biden and members of Congress as part of his efforts to persuade American officials to approve more aid for his nation.
Biden has requested $60 billion for Ukraine. However, the US administration warned that it will soon run out of money for Ukraine’s war effort. Republicans insisted on making substantial adjustments to border and asylum policies before voting on the supplemental funding request.
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Published: 24 Dec 2023, 07:14 AM IST