Ukraine peace talks stuck in deadlock, Finland's President warns
Photo: Finnish President Alexander Stubb (Getty Images)
Finnish President Alexander Stubb believes that negotiations to end the war in Ukraine have reached an impasse, VG reports.
According to the Finnish President, the pause in the trilateral talks is due to two reasons.
"This may be related to the war in Iran, which is diverting attention from the war in Ukraine. But it could also be a suspension of the talks because they have reached an impasse and are not moving forward," he says.
Stubb believes that US representatives did everything they could, and now almost everything depends on the issue of the Donbas territory. At the same time, he emphasized that, in his opinion, Russia does not want peace.
The President of Finland notes that in the absence of negotiations, the most important task in the future will be to increase pressure on Russia.
"But, unfortunately, with the war in Iran and the Americans’ decision to ease sanctions on Russian oil sales, things are not going as we would like," Stubb states.
At the same time, he noted that Europe now bears greater responsibility and plays a more prominent role in the further development of events in Ukraine.
"Europe is now in a better position than it was a year ago. We are responsible for almost all of Ukraine’s economic and military support. We have allowed Ukraine to produce more military equipment to meet its needs. A year ago, there were no negotiations at all," says the President of Finland.
Donbas issue
In 2026, Ukraine, with US mediation, had already held several rounds of negotiations with Russia. The parties have made progress on the military track, specifically regarding monitoring the ceasefire.
At the same time, Ukraine and Russia have been unable to reach an agreement on the ceasefire itself, as Russia country wants the unoccupied Donbas to be handed over, a demand Kyiv refuses to accept. Washington, for its part, proposes establishing a free economic zone there.
In response, Zelenskyy rejected any exchange of Donbas territory for other regions. He emphasized that Russia understood it would be able to hold onto the border territories, and the time would come when the Ukrainian Armed Forces would drive the occupiers out of there.
In addition, the President of Ukraine stressed that during future negotiations, it was necessary to agree on a meeting at the leadership level, since it was only in this format that a decision on the territorial issue could be reached.
Yesterday, March 25, Zelenskyy announced that the US was ready to provide security guarantees to Ukraine only after it withdraws its troops from Donbas.
