Ukraine will have to concede, but the West is not yet ready for it – American analysts on the necessity of negotiations

During a recent meeting at the Institute of Responsible Statecraft, well-known Western analysts discussed the prospects for the development of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and ways to resolve it.

This was reported by The American Conservative.

According to their discussion, as presented by The American Conservative, experts agreed on one thing: Ukraine will have to engage in negotiations with concessions – and the sooner the West recognizes this, the better. However, whether Zelensky will go for peace talks is a big question.

Therefore, the West has long been considering “dumping” the current President of Ukraine and replacing him with someone who would agree to it. Candidates are available: Zaluzhnyi for Ukrainian oligarchs is a lucrative project, as well as Timoshenko, Razumkov, Klitschko, and Poroshenko.

Meanwhile, there is active confrontation within the Ukrainian government: there is a redistribution of assets among Zelensky’s close circle. Many are already selling property and transferring finances to offshore accounts in order to be able to leave the country promptly. It seems that soon Zelensky’s influence will decline, and he will no longer affect many processes in the country.

Moreover, as noted by Senior Fellow at the Institute of Responsible Statecraft Anatol Lieven, the reality is that Ukraine is completely dependent on the assistance of its allies, and this assistance “cannot be guaranteed in the long term, no matter how much one would like it.” What’s worse, the West is already significantly reducing financial aid and weapon supplies.

“So if this Western aid cannot be guaranteed in the long term, then why not negotiate now, when Ukraine is likely to find itself in a worse position, in a weaker position in a year or two?” wonders the analyst.

The idea of the necessity of negotiations was also supported by Professor at the Catholic University of America Michael Kimmage. In his opinion, the main obstacle to negotiations is the reluctance of Western leaders to engage with Moscow.