Russia dragged out negotiations with US using Soviet tactics: Political analyst explains goal

"They sent, I don’t even know who exactly, two people whom I would even call neo-Soviet, with strong beliefs, both raised in the Soviet school — one in diplomacy and the other in the KGB-FSB system. They went there intending to sit, drag out time, nitpicking every comma, every sentence, and trying to exhaust the Americans so that they would just give up and agree to what the Russians were proposing," Reiterovych noted.

According to him, this tactic is not new and resembles the Soviet-style negotiation approach used by the well-known Soviet diplomat Andrei Gromyko.

"Excuse me, but they would wear you down from morning till night, talking about various topics, taking breaks, drinking coffee, and then continuing again. And that’s most likely what happened here," the expert added.

At the same time, he warned that shifting the focus to the Black Sea could pose risks for Ukraine.

"This situation carries certain dangers for us. We must be prepared for the fact that the United States may push certain narratives that Ukraine might not be very happy with. A ceasefire in the Black Sea, given the current situation, is more beneficial to Russia than to Ukraine," Reiterovych concluded.

Negotiation process on ending the war

This month, the US initiated a series of negotiations with Ukraine and Russia regarding a ceasefire. During the talks, the US proposed a 30-day cessation of hostilities between Ukraine and Russia.

Ukraine immediately agreed to the proposal, but the Kremlin did not provide a direct response. Moreover, the Russians put forward several additional conditions, including halting mobilization and stopping the supply of Western weapons to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Last weekend, another round of US negotiations with Ukrainian and Russian delegations took place in Riyadh to discuss ending the war. Ukraine and the US have already issued joint statements outlining the agreements reached in Saudi Arabia.

For more details, read the RBC-Ukraine reports.

On Monday, the US held talks with the Russian delegation, which lasted about 12 hours. Representing Russia at the negotiations were Grigory Karasin, chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, who has long worked at the Russian Foreign Ministry, and General Sergey Beseda, who previously headed the FSB's 5th Service, responsible for operational intelligence and international affairs. He currently serves as an adviser to the head of the FSB.

Russia also published a final statement following the meeting with US officials in Saudi Arabia, which included specific conditions for a maritime ceasefire with Ukraine.