Politico: Ukraine’s red lines for reaching peace deal with Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European allies are meeting on August 13 with US President Donald Trump online to outline red lines they hope will prevent Russia from using negotiations to regroup. Kyiv remains skeptical about what could emerge from the upcoming talks between Putin and Trump in Alaska.

Ukraine has made clear its strategic priorities in any negotiations with Russia, Caliber.Az reports, citing a Politico article.

Durable ceasefire before any territory swaps

A durable ceasefire is a prerequisite for any territorial discussions. 

“We support what President Trump wanted — a ceasefire, and then sit down at the negotiating table and talk about everything else,” Zelenskyy emphasised.

Kyiv has repeatedly rejected giving up control of Donbas or other territory as part of a land swap, a concept floated by Trump and the US side.

“Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. “If today we leave Donbas, from our fortifications … we will clearly open a bridgehead for preparing an offensive by the Russians. In a few years, Putin will have an open path to both the Zaporizhzhia and Dnipro regions. And not only that. Also to Kharkiv.”

If Kyiv does ultimately have to make some compromise as part of a final deal based on the realities on the battlefield, it will then only talk about the territorial matters after Russia agrees to and sticks to a ceasefire, a person familiar with the matter told POLITICO on condition of anonymity. 

Russia has to compensate

Kyiv is also pressing Moscow to compensate for the extensive damage inflicted on Ukraine. The destruction wrought upon Ukraine in human and material terms is immense. Estimates range from $500 billion through to $1 trillion. 

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz noted, “Russia must pay for the approximately €500 billion in damages caused. Until this happens, Moscow must not be granted access to its frozen assets.”

Security guarantees 

Security guarantees remain central to Ukraine’s demands, with membership in NATO and the European Union seen as the long-term safeguard against future Russian attacks. 

“Will we be in NATO? In the EU? I haven’t heard anything — simply not a single proposal that would guarantee that a new war won’t start tomorrow,” Zelenskyy said. 

Children and POWs must come home

Other priorities include the return of almost 20,000 Ukrainian children abducted by Russia and maintaining sanctions that are weakening Moscow. 

According to the remarks made by a senior European official, US cuts to foreign assistance are also hurting the ability of groups to track thousands of abducted Ukrainian children. 

Sanctions

Timothy Ash, an analyst who tracks Ukraine, estimated that the war has so far cost Russia about $2 trillion, close to its annual economic output.

“The most dangerous scenario for us is the possible lifting of U.S. sanctions and the resumption of trade with Russia. This requires our tacit consent or legitimization, which should never be allowed. Our task is to prevent Trump or anyone else from having a chance to save Russia. We need to maintain and strengthen sanctions, as well as strike at the enemy’s industrial, energy, and logistics facilities. This destroys its production potential and further undermines the economy.”Illya Neskhodovskyi, of the ANTS National Interest Protection Network, warned.

Ash added, “The reality here is that Ukraine could survive the war, but not survive the peace. The peace could be so bad, that it could strain the very social, economic, and political fabric of the country resulting in effective state failure.”

By Sabina Mammadli