U.S. expects Ukraine-Russia negotiations on favorable terms by end of 2024
U.S. expects Ukraine-Russia negotiations on favorable terms by the end of 2024 (Getty Images)
The United States of America and its allies are making efforts, including supplying arms, to ensure that by the end of 2024, Ukraine can engage in negotiations with Russia on favorable terms, according to the first deputy assistant to the U.S. president for national security, Jonathan Finer, during a speech at the Aspen Security Forum.
"I think the place we would like to put the Ukrainians at the end of next year is where Russia is confronted with a decision: either they have to come to the negotiating table on terms that would be acceptable to Ukraine, and based on the UN charter's dictates of sovereignty and territorial integrity for Ukraine, or they will face a stronger Ukraine," Finer said.
According to him, Ukraine will be able to launch a new offensive, relying on the more powerful industrial base of the United States and Europe, which will enhance the capabilities of their military-industrial complex, as well as Ukraine itself.
Finer also added that the United States is working on the development of the Ukrainian defense industry. He revealed that these issues were discussed at a conference in the U.S. Department of Commerce with the participation of representatives from the industry and governments of the United States, Ukraine, and Europe.
Ukraine-Russian negotiations
After the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, several rounds of negotiations were held, but they were later put on hold. Last year, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy adopted a decision of the National Security and Defense Council on the impossibility of negotiations with the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
For the resumption of negotiations, Russia must:
- Completely leave the territory of Ukraine;
- Change the political elite;
- Acknowledge war crimes;
- Extradite the organizers of the war for trial.
Recently, the American channel NBC News, citing officials in the EU and the U.S., stated that Western countries have begun to discuss with Ukraine the possibility of peace talks with Russia, though not publicly. Presumably, they anticipate some actions on the part of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy refuted claims that the U.S. and the EU are pressuring Ukraine regarding peaceful negotiations with Russia.
