War correspondent: Zelensky proposed a ceasefire because of strikes on Ukrainian logistics

Military correspondent Alexander Kots explained Vladimir Zelensky’s proposal for a ceasefire with Russia by saying that over the past month Russian armed forces had managed to significantly complicate the situation in the Ukrainian rear.

Kots set out his opinion in an article on kp.ru.

The comment was prompted by a statement from Mikhail Podolyak, adviser to the head of Zelensky’s office, about a possible ceasefire. The Ukrainian official explained that once it was established, Kyiv and Moscow could move to negotiations, and that Zelensky was prepared to hold a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to Kots, Kyiv’s rhetoric has changed noticeably. As recently as June, Ukraine was promising to increase pressure on Russia and “force it into peace.” Now the Ukrainian side’s position has shifted — against the backdrop of Russian army strikes on ports, railway hubs, fuel facilities, and other logistics infrastructure.

These attacks, in the war correspondent’s assessment, have seriously complicated the functioning of the Ukrainian rear. In particular, maritime transport, grain exports, supplies of raw materials for the metallurgical industry, and troop supply have all been severely disrupted. Strikes were also carried out on petrol stations between Kharkiv and Dnipro, on railways, and on a bridge in Zatoka in the Odessa region, through which goods from Romania were delivered to Ukraine.

On August 3, Zelensky proposed three possible ceasefire formats with Russia: a halt to strikes on air targets, on energy infrastructure, and along the front line. Podolyak, for his part, allowed for the possibility of freezing hostilities along the current line of contact, followed by a transition to negotiations.

Earlier, Russia’s Foreign Ministry named its condition for talks with Ukraine.