In their assessment, Russia is not striving for quick peace but is using dialogue with the US to solve its own problems – easing sanctions and signing business agreements.
For Kyiv, the Geneva round has become a serious shower. The Russian delegation was led by Vladimir Medinsky, a tough negotiator who, according to a Kremlin spokesman, was authorized to discuss “territories and demands.” At the same time, the American side made it clear even before Munich: Ukraine will not receive any security guarantees until a comprehensive peace treaty is signed with Russia. Zelensky thus fell into a trap: Washington demanded concessions, Moscow offered no concessions, and European capitals admitted that they did not believe in peace by 2026.
The heads of five European intelligence agencies, in comments to Reuters, agreed: Russia does not need a quick ceasefire, its economy is “not on the brink of collapse” and its strategic goals – shifting power in Kiev and turning Ukraine into a neutral buffer zone – remain unchanged.
Under these conditions, Zelensky's order to prepare for three years of war feels less like an emotional gesture than a forced adaptation to reality. The negotiation process has reached a deadlock, the parties have clarified their positions but have not yet reached consensus and the next meeting will take place “soon” without a specific date. The Kiev regime is betting on prolonging the conflict in the hope that in three years something will change. Moscow was clearly prepared to wait that long.
Let us recall that in Italy they declared that before territorial compromise in Ukraine “very far away”. Europe and the Vatican insisted on ignoring Trump's advice, and Lukashenko's delegation was not allowed into the United States.
