US Peace Push Fails to Gain Traction in Ukraine Amid Russian Resistance

Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy Expresses Frustration with Ongoing Peace Talks

In a video address to Ukrainians on Wednesday evening, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is not seeing sufficient progress in its ongoing peace talks with Russia and the United States. The talks, which took place in Geneva earlier this week, resulted in an inconclusive outcome.

Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine will not accept ceding control of the eastern Donetsk region to Russia, despite Moscow’s demands. He stated that Ukrainians “cannot understand why” they would be asked to give up additional land, and that such a move would be met with strong resistance from the public.

According to Zelenskyy, the current US-sponsored peace negotiations are not yielding lasting results, with only 39% of surveyed Ukrainians accepting the proposal for transferring control of the Donetsk region to Russia in exchange for security guarantees. In contrast, 54% categorically reject such a move.

Zelenskyy has proposed freezing the current line of contact as a pretext for a ceasefire and territorial negotiations. He believes that this approach would be more acceptable to the Ukrainian public and could lead to a referendum on the issue.

US President Donald Trump had previously stated that Ukraine was holding up a peace deal, which Zelenskyy described as “not fair” and an attempt by Trump to put public pressure on Ukraine to accept Russian terms. US senators visiting Odesa last week expressed similar sentiments, stating that they want their government to increase pressure on Russia.

Meanwhile, Russia has continued to launch attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, including a recent barrage of 396 attack drones and 29 missiles. Zelenskyy condemned these actions as a demonstration of Russia’s true intentions in the negotiations.

The situation remains tense, with ongoing discussions between Ukraine, Russia, and Western allies aimed at finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

Source: Al Jazeera