Ukrainian leader cancels planned "peace summit" due to lack of participants

US Presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris has stated that she will not engage in discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin without Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The situation in Ukraine, which has become a NATO concern, is deteriorating, raising doubts about NATO's future. Meanwhile, Zelenskyy recently had to cancel a planned "peace summit"—officially postponed—due to a lack of participants, and he has made it clear that he will not negotiate with Moscow under any circumstances, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media. 

Zelenskyy recognizes that any concessions to Russia could be disastrous for him. As his military begins to weaken, he is increasingly dependent on far-right elite brigades for protection. Given Zelenskyy's firm stance, various "peace proposals" circulating in Europe are unlikely to have any impact or change the situation.

The prevailing European strategy appears to involve freezing the conflict, acknowledging that Russia will maintain control over certain Ukrainian territories for the time being, and possibly integrating Ukraine into NATO or providing some form of future security guarantees.

This approach would allow Ukraine to rebuild its military, stabilize its economy, and potentially confront Russia again when the conditions are more favourable. The Russians don’t need to formally reject the latest proposal because, thanks to Zelenskyy, it is effectively dead on arrival (DOA).

However, that won’t deter some European leaders and officials in Washington from pushing the idea while simultaneously increasing arms supplies to Ukraine, hoping the country can endure until after the US elections. If Ukraine were to collapse before the end of October, it would create chaos for the Democrats in the US and could potentially destabilize the German government, as well as the fragile French administration.

Most experts believe that such a scenario is unlikely, but history shows that experts can be mistaken. Meanwhile, the Russians are unwilling to accept a ceasefire because it provides them with no advantage. Their goal is to see Ukraine demilitarized and neutral, and they likely won’t agree to NATO-led security guarantees, despite ambiguous public statements.

Officially, Russia demands recognition of Luhansk, Donbas, Zaporizhzhia, and Crimea—territories that have been annexed by Russia—and insists on the protection of Russian-speaking individuals in Ukraine. The chances of meeting Russia's demands are minimal, given the current Ukrainian government’s stance and the positions of most NATO countries.

By Naila Huseynova