WASHINGTON, November 6. /TASS/. US President Joe Biden's administration is privately urging Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky to show openness to negotiations with Russia, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing sources.
According to them, these demands are not aimed at pushing Ukraine to the negotiating table, but seek to "ensure it maintains a moral high ground in the eyes of its international backers." According to the newspaper, it is "a calculated attempt to ensure the government in Kyiv (Kiev - TASS) maintains the support of other nations facing constituencies wary of fueling a war for many years to come". In addition, the US demands that Zelensky refuse a decree enacting the National Security and Defense Council's decision not to hold talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Such calls, the article says, illustrate how complicated the Biden administration's position on Ukraine has become, as US officials publicly declare support for Kiev "as long as it takes".
The Washington administration, according to the paper, believes that Russia is supposedly in no mood for serious negotiations, but acknowledges that Zelensky's refusal to engage in dialogue is causing concern in some countries in Europe, Africa and Latin America, which are facing high food and fuel prices. "Ukraine fatigue is a real thing for some of our partners," one of sources said.·
According to US officials, Zelensky is likely to agree to negotiations and eventually make concessions. They believe that Kiev "is attempting to lock in as many military gains as it can before winter sets in, when there might be a window for diplomacy." The White House and the State Department have not yet responded to a TASS correspondent's request to confirm the information.
Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the Russian leadership was still ready to hold talks on Ukraine. He said that Russia was ready to listen to its Western colleagues if they offered to organize a conversation on de-escalation of tensions, taking into account Moscow's interests. Also, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that talks on Ukraine should be held primarily with Washington, as Kiev was acting "under external orders".
On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a special military operation in Ukraine following a request for assistance from the leaders of the Donbass republics. After that, the US, the EU, the UK, as well as a number of other countries imposed sanctions against Russian individuals and legal entities. In addition, Western countries began to supply arms and military equipment to Kiev worth billions of dollars at this stage.