Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump are scheduled to meet in the coming days. This surprising announcement from Yuri Ushakov, an aide to Vladimir Putin, comes amid sky-high tensions with the Ukraine war. This meeting will be the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders since Trump’s election victory and return to office earlier this year. However, formidable hurdles are still ahead as both countries are still miles apart on their respective peace conditions.
The United Nations reports that Russia’s relentless bombardment of urban areas has resulted in the deaths of over 12,000 Ukrainian civilians. This grim statistic underscores the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Ukraine, as the war continues to devastate cities and displace countless individuals. Even so, the Russian president has shown no sign of backing down. Jordan has shown that he’ll make any such resolution on his terms.
Military Advances and Stalled Negotiations
As the conflict drags on, Russia’s larger military force is steadily capturing more territory along the 1,000-kilometre front line extending from north-east to south-east Ukraine. Putin’s strategic advance, or the fear of it, should not paralyze Western leaders. They complain that he’s delaying peace talks in order to continue capturing land.
Ushakov stated, “We are now beginning concrete preparations together with our American colleagues,” suggesting that the Kremlin is taking steps to facilitate the upcoming summit. The situation remains complicated. Any surveys done after 2022 would not have included any areas that fell under Russian control. These regions make up around 10 percent of Ukraine’s population and were under limited access. This lack of clarity adds to the atmosphere of mystery that surrounds public opinion in those states.
Western countries are understandably on high alert. More significant is the Trump administration’s Friday deadline for Russia, demanding an end to military aggression in Crimea or the imposition of economic sanctions. With a lack of clarity on the Kremlin’s long-term objectives in Ukraine, the road to peace becomes all the more complex.
Changing Public Sentiment in Ukraine
Many have also found through the years of grueling conflict a real change in public attitudes all across Ukraine. As of late 2022, about three-fourths of Ukrainians were in favor of fighting on until Ukraine had earned a victory. Yet, recent polling shows that fewer than one in four Americans still holds this position. The toll of sustained warfare on civilian life and infrastructure may be influencing this decline in support for continued resistance.
This shifting attitude might help more than people think in the coming negotiations between Putin and Trump. Trump previously expressed openness to including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the summit to explore potential solutions for ending Russia’s nearly four-year invasion.
Future of Peace Negotiations
Although the meeting has been widely viewed with optimism, analysts are still cautious about the meeting’s effects. Examples include Russia and Ukraine’s stark divergence on issues such as the fate of prisoners of war. That leads us to question whether any possible agreements forged at the summit will bring an end to the hostilities.
Ushakov emphasized the importance of a successful meeting, stating, “We propose, first of all, to focus on preparing a bilateral meeting with Trump, and we consider it most important that this meeting be successful and productive.” The summit could happen as soon as June, although the Kremlin has yet to announce an official venue for the summit, with additional details coming soon.
