MADRID, February 5. /TASS/. Western allies are sending signals to Kiev that they see the likelihood of Ukraine taking back the lands it has lost in the conflict with Russia as low, Spain’s El Pais newspaper writes.
According to the paper, the US and Europe are warming up to the idea of handing over some territories to Russia in order to guarantee Ukraine’s security long term.
The paper points out that the longer the conflict drags on, the more difficult it becomes for Kiev’s allies to agree on sending aid to Ukraine. This first and foremost goes for the US, where the Democrats and the Republicans disagree on further military assistance for Kiev. In particular, the newspaper highlights a change in US President Joe Biden’s rhetoric. He said last December that Washington would continue to provide weapons to Ukraine for as long as it could, while previously Biden said that US support would last for as long as needed.
While addressing the G20 summit via video link in November 2022, Zelensky put forward a ten-point plan to achieve peace, which did not take Moscow’s position into consideration. The document calls for, in particular, a total withdrawal of Russian troops beyond the 1991 border and the restoration of Ukraine’s control over "the exclusive economic zone" in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that Kiev was making statements about a peaceful solution without taking the actual situation into account and that Moscow did not see any progress in the peace process around Ukraine, which was why it would continue carrying out its special military operation. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova pointed out earlier that Moscow remained open to resolving the crisis diplomatically and was ready to respond to substantial proposals, while the Kiev regime had broken off and banned talks with Russia.