Reuters reveals Russia's real goal in talks with US
Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump (photo: Getty Images)
Russia is using negotiations with the United States not to achieve peace, but to lift sanctions and secure business deals, Reuters reports.
The heads of five European intelligence agencies, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the agency that they are pessimistic about the chances of reaching an agreement to end the war in Ukraine this year.
They gave this forecast despite statements by US President Donald Trump that negotiations mediated by the United States had brought the prospect of a deal "reasonably close."
One European intelligence chief said that the negotiations, the latest round of which took place in Geneva, are "negotiation theater."
Talks in Geneva
On February 17–18, another round of trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia took place in Geneva. Ukrainian authorities said they planned to discuss the work of a monitoring mission in the event of a ceasefire, as well as an energy truce.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that during the two-day talks in Geneva, the delegations of Ukraine, Russia, and the United States achieved significant progress on the military track. At the same time, he noted that discussions of political issues were difficult.
In addition, Zelenskyy stated that negotiations between Ukraine and the aggressor country in Geneva could have already reached the final stage, but Russia is trying to delay them.
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine and head of the Ukrainian delegation, Rustem Umerov, said that during the trilateral talks in Geneva, it was possible to clarify some issues. And the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, reported that the conversation was not easy, but important.
Later, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry announced that Kyiv and Moscow had already agreed on a new round of negotiations. This agreement was also confirmed by the head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky.
At the same time, Zelenskyy, in an interview with British journalist Piers Morgan, announced that the fourth round of talks would again take place in Switzerland. In addition, he said that he would like a meeting before the end of February.
