Yesterday at 22:20
According to Ukrinform, this is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
“Public statements by Kremlin officials continue to demonstrate that Russia remains committed to achieving its original goals of the war in Ukraine and is not interested in negotiating in good faith to end the war,” ISW analysts concluded following a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on July 10.
The day before the meeting, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova reiterated Russia’s initial military demands for a change of government in Ukraine and “demilitarization.” On July 10, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated that Moscow insists on taking into account “realities on the ground.”
ISW emphasizes that Kremlin officials often call on Ukraine to recognize “realities on the ground,” referring to the current front line in Ukraine and hinting that Russia is in a stronger negotiating position given the situation on the battlefield. They also demand that Ukraine give in to Russia’s unyielding demands, which are effectively tantamount to Kyiv’s complete surrender to Moscow, the report says.
“The Kremlin continues to use its diplomatic relations with the United States to divert attention from the war in Ukraine, shifting it to the potential restoration of Russian-American relations,” the Institute for War Studies states.
The Russian Foreign Ministry’s statement on the meeting between Rubio and Lavrov emphasizes that they discussed bilateral US-Russian issues unrelated to the war in Ukraine, including the resumption of US-Russian contacts, economic and humanitarian cooperation, direct air traffic and the work of diplomatic missions.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also said in a statement that the United States and Russia will continue to engage in dialogue on “a growing range of issues of mutual interest.”
On July 10, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that he saw no “slowdown in progress” in the development of US-Russian relations.
Earlier, ISW noted that the Kremlin sought to use economic initiatives unrelated to the war in Ukraine and the prospect of US-Russia arms control talks to gain concessions from the United States over the war in Ukraine.
ISW also emphasized that Putin has tried to use the negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program and Moscow’s offers of mediation in the Israeli-Iranian war to present himself as an “effective” negotiator in Trump’s eyes, to no avail – in particular, to obtain concessions from the United States in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“The Kremlin is likely trying to force the United States to suspend its diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine in exchange for the development of bilateral relations and economic opportunities between the United States and Russia,” ISW said.
As reported by Ukrinform, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Malaysia on Thursday, July 10, after the second massive air strike on Ukraine in the last few days. The meeting lasted 50 minutes.
Afterward, Rubio said that the United States is disappointed with the lack of progress in the peaceful settlement of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
He added that Russia had offered a “new and different approach” during today’s talks, without specifying what this approach included.
