On Friday, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was drawing up a “detailed plan” for how Kyiv believes the war with Russia should end. He said he would put forward a detailed plan in a matter of months.
Based on the public statements by Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin, there does not seem to be any form of engagement regarding the conflict. The two sides appear to be as distant as ever regarding the terms of a potential peace settlement.
Zelensky hosted a major summit in Switzerland earlier this month, at which more than 90 countries were represented. The summit aimed to rally support for Ukraine, and a communique was issued stating that Ukraine’s territory must be respected in any agreement to end the war.
However, on Friday, at a press conference alongside Slovenian leader Natasa Musar, he said, “We must show a plan to end the war that will be supported by the majority of the world”, Zelensky said.
Ukraine insists Russia must withdraw its troops from its territory, including the peninsula of Crimea that Moscow annexed in 2014 before peace talks can start. Putin, on the other hand, is looking to annex more territories, especially across Ukraine’s east and south.
Russia’s troops are slowly advancing on the front and currently occupy about a fifth of its neighbour.