Zelenskyy: 'Bad Moment' for Negotiations with Russia

SEP 11 2023·Updated SEP 12 2023

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Image credit: Ukraine's Presidential Press Office

The Facts

Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has once again ruled out negotiations with Russia, telling the Economist in an interview published over the weekend that he and his country must instead be prepared for a long war.
Yahoo! News
Zelenskyy said that "some partners may take Ukraine's recent difficulties on the battlefield as a reason to force it to negotiate with Russia," but added that "this is a bad moment, since [Russian Pres.] Putin sees the same."
Italian Post
The Ukrainian Pres. went further and rejected any potential compromise with Russia, stating that the war will continue "as long as Russia remains on Ukrainian territory," and that any negotiated settlement would not be permanent.
Ukrainska Pravda
Comparing Putin to the 1930s Nazi leader, Zelenskyy said that those who negotiate with the Russian leader would be "tricking themselves," just "like the Western leaders who signed an agreement with Adolf Hitler in Munich in 1938 only to watch him invade Czechoslovakia."
Ukrainska Pravda
Zelenskyy acknowledged that a long war would risk waning Western suport — particularly in light of the upcoming US elections next year — but said that he expects US support to continue, particularly if Pres. Joe Biden is re-elected.
The Economist
He added that a long war would require a "totally militarised economy," but said the prospect would have to be put to Ukrainian citizens first. The Economist reported Zelenskyy as saying he is "morally" ready for a lengthy conflict: "I have to be ready, my team has to be ready for the long war, and emotionally I am ready."
Ukrainska Pravda

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The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

As Ukraine's history and that of its ex-Soviet neighbors has shown, Russia cannot be trusted to hold to any agreements it might enter into. Any settlement would simply give Moscow the opportunity to regroup before continuing its expansionist policies further down the road.

Politico

Establishment-critical narrative

Russia and Ukraine were in fact very close to a peace agreement — until former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson traveled to Kyiv and pressured Ukraine to withdraw. Ever since, Western countries have continually sought to prolong the war for the purposes of weakening Russia. Nevertheless, the reality is that Russia and Ukraine are neighbors and will inevitably have to make peace — something that should be sought sooner rather than later.

Asia Times