What does the latest round of diplomacy in Ukraine tell us about the situation of Russian president Vladimir Putin?
For starters, he is not ready to sign a peace treaty. At least, not now.
And certainly not the deal (or deal) on the table.
“No compromise version was found,” commented Kerrinin Foreign Fomatical Policy Aide Yuri Ushakov after the advey in Moscow, and Donald Trump’s Stever Witkoff, and Song-Law Jared Kushen.
No compromise is not really surprising, considering the Kremlin’s non-confirming comments in recent days.
In various statements he condemned the leadership of Ukraine as a “Thieving Junta”, accused European leaders of trying to sabotage peace efforts, and insisted that Russia holds the initiative on the battlefield.
On a couple of recent occasions, Russian TV showed military collections, studying the maps of the front line and the majority of those captured by the military line, most of which flowed into the military, many of the military practices, which were denied by Ukraine and International Scomness.
After almost four years of Russian invasion of Ukraine, despite the heavy losses Russia has suffered on the battlefield and the deterioration of the Russian region, it seems that he is convinced of this war and now it is not time.
At least, that’s what he wants the west to believe: that nothing can stop him now from achieving his goals.
I said before, in many ways, Vladimir Putin reminds me of a car with no brakes, no steering wheel and no reverse gear; A car that takes care of full speed is accelerated on the motorway.
Almost four years after the full invasion of Ukraine there is no sign of the “putinmobile” turning off, or letting up.
He wants his opponents to think that nothing or no one can force him to change direction: neither European leaders, nor President Zelensky.
But cars need fuel (a constant supply).
And, to fight a war, countries need money (a constant supply).
Today, despite international sanctions, the Russian government is still able to finance “special military operations” – its war in Ukraine. But economic pressures are building: Revenues from oil and gas are falling, the budget deficit is growing.
Even Putin admits there are problems, referring to “imbalances” in the economy.
“In many sectors, production output not only failed to increase this year but actually decreased,” Putin said this week. “Are we satisfied with such trends? No.”
The big unknown: At what point, if at all, will economic concerns begin to influence the Kremlin’s calculations on the battlefield?