Zelenskyi still publicly excludes the possibility that he would “exchange” Ukrainian sovereignty or territory for ending the war. According to the Bloomberg agency, however, Ukrainian officials have made it clear that they are ready to admit that the war must end.
Zelenskyj was supposed to present the change of position at Thursday’s meeting of the contact group for the defense of Ukraine in Ramstein. It will not take place, however, because US President Joe Biden will supervise the preparations for the impact of Hurricane Milton and the subsequent crisis operations instead, and has canceled his visit to Germany. Zelenskyj will probably demonstrate his flexibility a few weeks later.
According to Bloomberg, pressure from the Western allies to submit a more concrete plan to end the war is growing. This is due to the situation at the front, difficulties with financing aid for Ukraine and, last but not least, the uncertainty regarding the results of the presidential elections in the USA.
According to the agency, the central element of any negotiation should be Ukraine’s membership in NATO. According to Biden, some Western countries are under pressure to send Kiev a direct invitation to join the North Atlantic Alliance. According to Bloomberg, this is unlikely, although it could be a potential trump card in negotiations with the Kremlin, which considers Ukraine in NATO to be “very” undesirable.
Russia demands that Ukraine refuse to join the Alliance. In June, President Vladimir Putin said he was ready to start peace talks if Kiev agreed to non-aligned, neutral and nuclear-free status and also recognized the Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions as Russian.
At the time, Zelensky described these conditions as another ultimatum. But according to Bloomberg, it is now more flexible.