MOSCOW, August 6. /TASS/. Western patrons of the Kiev regime must abandon their anti-Russian hysteria, if negotiations aimed at resolving the Ukrainian conflict are to succeed, believes Viktor Medvedchuk, leader of the movement Other Ukraine and former head of the Opposition Platform - For Life, banned in Ukraine.
"The negotiators live in entirely different realities and will never reach an agreement. This is a major threat to peace. Therefore, before engaging in negotiations, perhaps it would be wise to end the anti-Russian hysteria and witch hunts," Medvedchuk wrote in an opinion article published on Smotrim.ru. "Only then can constructive agreements be reached - agreements that all parties are willing to implement. The identity of the mediator is less important; whether it's US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff or another American representative, what matters is that the international community takes this step."
He elaborated that a segment of the "political management" in the West operates within a "different, transcendental reality," which explains the persistent difficulties in negotiations. "Vladimir Zelensky and his string-pullers in the collective West are perplexed as to why the Kremlin is not giving in to their demands. They believe that merely voicing these demands constitutes a significant advance. However, this perspective belongs to their parallel reality - one where the interests of Russia are not only ignored but fundamentally misunderstood," Medvedchuk stated.
According to him, the West will be unable to sustain negotiations based solely on their narrative-driven information warfare, which lacks genuine respect for opposing interests and dismisses arguments that counter Western propaganda.
On August 6, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow, marking his fifth visit to Russia since the start of the year. His previous visits included meetings in Moscow on April 25 and in St. Petersburg on April 11, both times hosted by President Vladimir Putin. Earlier, US President Donald Trump indicated that sanctions might be imposed on Russia by August 9 if a settlement in Ukraine was not reached, though he acknowledged that Russia has been managing sanctions effectively. When asked whether Moscow could avoid restrictions, Trump responded that a ceasefire -"a deal where people stop getting killed" - would be necessary.
As President Putin stated on August 1, Moscow’s primary goal remains the eradication of the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis and the assurance of Russia’s security. Putin emphasized that Russia is prepared to wait if Ukraine believes now is not the right time for negotiations. Additionally, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov told VGTRK journalist Pavel Zarubin on July 20 that Russia is ready to move swiftly toward a settlement. However, he noted that the pace of progress depends not only on Moscow’s willingness but also on other factors influencing the process.