Kremlin issues stern warning to Ukraine, urging them to reconsider Putin's proposed deal.
The global consensus is that Russia's truce proposal amounts to an imposed peace deal. The Kremlin urges Ukraine to accept it despite the potential worsening circumstances. Yet, negotiations with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy are not on Moscow's agenda.
The Kremlin ups the ante against Ukraine with the intimidation of future territorial demands. All of President Putin's peace offers, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, are contingent on the present battlefield status. "Ukraine's situation is spiraling downwards," Peskov stated, adding that the dynamics at the frontlines hint at Kiev's continuous deterioration. A seasoned politician would dismiss Putin's offer, as stated by another seasoned politician.
The statements by Kremlin spokesperson Peskov originate from an interview he granted to Russian state television. Pro-Kremlin journalist Pavel Sarubin prematurely released the interview on Telegram.
Putin's Prerequisites
Putin insists on the full withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from territories under Russian occupation, namely Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia, as a precondition for a ceasefire. Moscow claims these territories, along with the annexed Crimea, as their own, although Russian troops only partially control them.
Ukraine has dismissed Russia's demands as ludicrous and manipulative. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry claimed, "Putin isn't seeking peace, he wants to divide the world." He aims to project himself as a peace mediator in a conflict he himself incited. In the West, Putin's demands were denounced as a "dictated peace."
The threat of Russia demanding further territories in upcoming talks should not cause excessive fear within the Ukrainian leadership. According to estimates by the independent online portal Meduza, Russia would not truly control the four claimed territories for 14 more years if the rate of occupation remains the same as it has been in recent months.
Disinterest in Zelenskyy
In the interview, the 56-year-old Peskov also expressed that the Kremlin has no intention of hammering out a deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Upon the completion of Zelenskyy's term, he would no longer be a legitimate representative of Kiev, according to Peskov.
Ukraine, due to the Russian military onslaught and occupation of parts of the country, is unable to conduct elections. The concern arises that polling stations may not be protected from Russian missile attacks. Ukrainian lawyers argue that the war regime revokes the right to vote. The theory proffered by Moscow that Zelenskyy is no longer a legitimate president is aimed at inciting turmoil within Ukraine and eroding Zelenskyy's reputation.
Concerning the legitimacy of his own president, Peskov was silent on the matter: Putin has governed Russia since the turn of the millennium as president or prime minister. In March, he was re-elected in a sham election at the age of 71. The opposition was previously suppressed or, like in the case of Alexei Navalny, is deceased. A constitutional reform allows Putin the opportunity to run for president again in 2030 and remain in power until 2036.
