Czech president: Ukraine has two months before Russia escalates war

Ukraine has roughly two months to revive peace negotiations with Russia before Moscow could significantly escalate the conflict, Czech President Petr Pavel has warned.

Speaking to The Telegraph, the former NATO military committee chief said Russian President Vladimir Putin could order a general mobilisation after parliamentary elections scheduled for September 20.

"I believe that the window is there for us to keep pushing and giving Russia a clear message that we are willing to start negotiations," Pavel noted.

According to him, Russia will have parliamentary elections in September, and President Putin will hardly declare mobilisation before, “but once the elections are over, then the window will shrink."

Pavel noted that a nationwide mobilisation campaign would likely prove unpopular among Russian voters.

The Czech president argued that Ukraine's allies should use the coming weeks to increase pressure on Moscow and encourage negotiations.

"Russia has a lot of internal problems and challenges at this point," he added.

İn his view, the Russian public is turning increasingly against the war and President Putin will have difficulties keeping calm at home, and if this pressure continues, if Ukraine continues to be capable and successful in hitting targets deep in Russian territory, “it will create conditions where Russia will be more inclined to negotiate."

According to the report, Ukrainian drone strikes in recent weeks have targeted Moscow, Russian fuel shipments destined for Crimea and an oil refinery in western Siberia.

Pavel stressed that NATO members must continue supporting Kyiv while maintaining diplomatic pressure on Russia.

"So I believe that we have to really keep pushing hard, give Ukraine what they need to be successful in their defence, and at the same time to exert all diplomatic skills to convince Russia that they have no other choice than to negotiate… that they can only get something out of negotiation instead of losing by continuing the war," he explained.

The Czech leader also described this year's NATO summit as successful, saying member states had demonstrated unity, reaffirmed support for Ukraine and committed to increasing defence spending and production.

"There was not a single word about Greenland during the whole NAC [North Atlantic Council] meeting," Pavel said. "The meeting was pretty smooth, and went probably better than many expected."

He added that US President Donald Trump had expressed appreciation for the efforts made by NATO allies.

"And he said, if I can quote, that he was highly impressed by the spirit shown in the room," Pavel said.

The Czech president also stressed the need to expand production of air defense systems and interceptors, arguing that demand among NATO members currently exceeds manufacturing capacity.

"At this point, what is clear is that demand clearly exceeds production capacity," he said.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov