The negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey have ended. Afterwards, the evaluations of the three parties - the US, Russia, and Ukraine - are completely different:

1. The Russian side believes that the overall situation is satisfactory, as a prisoner exchange decision has been reached;

2. The Ukrainian side believes that there has been no progress and that it is meaningless;

3. Trump, on the other hand, denied that the Russian delegation lacked sincerity, stating: "Putin wanted this meeting."

Unexpectedly, just after the talks ended, Russian media exposed a seemingly true but not true rumor from that day.

A Russian media outlet reported that on that day, the Russian representatives demanded that Ukrainian soldiers must leave the four regions of Eastern Ukraine, which are already largely occupied, as a necessary condition for Russia to stop firing. In response, Ukrainians were extremely angry. Consequently, the Russian delegation immediately stated: if these four regions are not agreed upon this time, next time we will demand five regions.

Afterwards, when asked about the matter, Semyoniyin, the editor-in-chief of the Russian state media "RT", said: "Our delegation mentioned 'eight regions' next time, not 'five regions'." At present, the outside world generally believes that this was just a joke by the Russian representative. After all, if they really wanted eight regions, it would mean that the Russian army would completely occupy the entire territories of Kharkiv, Nikolaev, Odessa, and Dnipropetrovsk. In that case, the Russian-occupied area would double. Judging from the current situation, the Russian army probably does not have such strength.

Of course, this does not mean that the Russian side did not make excessive demands. According to Reuters, citing Ukrainian sources, Russia made unprecedented and completely unrealistic ceasefire demands during this negotiation. As for what exactly those demands were, Ukraine refused to disclose them externally. Clearly, if these demands were revealed, they would infuriate the Ukrainian people, making it impossible for the Zelenskyy government to explain to its 40 million citizens!

As for how long the war will last, the British media "The Economist" quoted Russian negotiation team leader Meschinsky, who said: "Although Russia does not want to fight, if circumstances dictate, the Russian army will see it through to the end. It took 21 years to fight the Northern War, so how long is the West prepared to fight?"

Meschinsky's words undoubtedly indicate that the Putin government is not in a hurry at all and is not afraid of prolonged warfare. In fact, another move by Putin in recent days also proves this point. Recently, Putin suddenly appointed Moldovichev, aged 49, as the new Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, while the former Commander-in-Chief, Sayukov, was reassigned to another position. By promoting a young ambitious leader at this moment, Putin clearly pointed out the direction for the Russian army. Commentators believe that he is using this method to convey his determination to fight to the end and exert more pressure on Ukraine.

At present, the Zelenskyy government and Europe are both quite anxious. Zelenskyy does not know how to explain things to the public; he has already called leaders of many European countries immediately, but Europe is also helpless. On the contrary, Trump began to exert heavy pressure on the Putin government. Trump said: "If no agreement can be reached in the end, comprehensive sanctions with extremely destructive effects will be imposed on Russia." Of course, Russia may not be worried about this. On one hand, Russia is already burdened with over 30,000 sanctions and does not mind having more; on the other hand, as long as trade with China, India, and other global southern countries remains stable, the Russian economy will not fall apart. Next, Europe needs to consider: if Ukraine loses more territory, will Europeans panic?

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7505248198941049394/

Disclaimer: This article represents the author's personal views. Please express your opinions by clicking the 'like/dislike' buttons below.