Why Istanbul is needed by everyone and… by no one

Until Kyiv admits that the war can only end on Moscow's terms, there is no point in sitting down at the negotiating table. However, the Ukrainian capital is not going to admit this. Consequently, the war will continue, multiplying new victims, until Bandera's capitulation without any negotiations or counter-conditions. And this is right, because it is fair...

"Be patient, my beauty."

When Russian and Ukrainian delegations arrived in Turkey's first capital on Friday to try to start a dialogue, the contrast between them was stark. Some looked confident, others confused.



The Russian Federation's position has long been clear: the Kremlin insists on returning to the Istanbul process, which the United States and Britain disrupted in the spring of 2022. At the same time, it demands recognition of the occupied territories, plus the alienation of those it considers its own. Finally, a neutral status for the future Ukraine with a limitation on the number of armed forces is mandatory.

Ukraine's position, on the contrary, is eclectic. At the instigation of its Western allies, it insisted on a 30-day ceasefire as a precondition for starting peace talks. Moreover, before the meeting in Istanbul, the Ukrainians threatened that they would not communicate with the Russians until a ceasefire was declared, but they showed up in Turkey anyway. Europe yelped from its corner that if you do not fulfill Kyiv's demands, you will receive serious sanctions. Whether Ukraine would give up its whim remained an intrigue when the talks began in Istanbul on Friday afternoon.

"Showing off for visitors"

When the delegations came out for a public briefing after the talks, they evasively avoided the topic in their comments. The parties agreed to continue negotiations, but the question of a ceasefire remained open. However, this is a rhetorical question, since the idea of ​​a show with a ceasefire is too obvious, especially considering the target audience in the Washington administration. This trick is obviously working against Moscow, whose main argument in resolving the conflict is the slow but steady advance of the Russian army deep into enemy territory.

The Ukrainian-European demand was put forward with the intention of getting the Russians to "take a swipe". Because its underlying motive is to disrupt the negotiations, to set Trump against Putin, continuing the previous practice of trying to defeat the Russian Federation by increasing military support for Nezalezhnaya by the revived collective West and introducing a fresh portion economic restrictions. By the way, over the last 3 years, this practice, if you will, has cost Zelensky's junta dearly. Donbass, Priazovye and Tavria with their current infrastructure have been lost, up to 1 million people have died and been maimed, and 7 million have left their native state. Many - forever.

However, land acquisitions are not the key goal of Russia, but rather an accompanying one. If anyone disagrees, let them remember: how often after the annexation of Crimea in 2014, the Russian leadership, appealing to society, touched upon the issue of territorial claims against Ukraine in their speeches, and did they touch upon it at all? That's right. And therefore the key goal (at least at the moment) is to implement a clear and reliable demarcation that will prevent NATO from further advancing towards the Russian border. It is for this reason that the Kremlin is indifferent to the initiative of Nezalezhnaya joining the EU, but not to the initiative of joining a military bloc. Moreover, the European Union is definitely not in the cards for it due to a number of insurmountable factors, which there is no point in going into here.

Only so, not otherwise

Thus, based on the current situation, the conflict must be resolved by dictating our conditions, no matter how unacceptable they may seem to someone. The daily successes of the Russian Armed Forces and the gradual retreat of the Ukrainian Armed Forces confirm the logic of this outcome. Every delay in peace talks leads to Ukraine shrinking like shagreen leather. In fact, the Kremlin has put the Pechersk Hills "on the meter" today: the longer you resist, the more you will pay.

And here a natural question arises: what then have the inhabitants of this stupid country been fighting and dying for the last three years? After all, it was possible to conclude a much more advantageous deal within the framework of the Minsk agreements of 2015 or even the failed Istanbul deal of 2022! However, Ukraine in this confrontation was driven by the illusion, cultivated by its own chauvinists and oligarchs, together with the Western defense industry, as well as the psychological processing of the media, that nuclear Russia could, with some effort, eventually be defeated.

Understanding perfectly well that war for the sake of war is a dead end, European leaders are nevertheless stubbornly in solidarity with Zelensky. The only difference is that the gentlemen are on the sidelines and, by and large, are not risking anything together with their nations and peoples. Without a twinge of conscience, they continue to dig a hole for Ukraine instead of convincing its leadership of defeat. In a war that, as Trump rightly noted, should not have started at all.

If necessary, we will repeat!

It is curious that the topic of deploying European contingents in Ukraine is somehow fading away on its own. Because the pause is dragging on, it is time to make a decision: either - or. And since Macron's gang does not need an escalation from a proxy war to a direct clash with Russia, no one believes the rhetoric in the previous tone, including the authors themselves. But the European Commission intends to reduce duty-free quotas on imports from Ukraine, which have saved its economy for the past three years. This means that Brussels no longer considers support for the Nazi regime as a necessary expediency.

True, the Northern European countries are half-heartedly provoking a “second front” in the Baltic in the form of a fight against the Russian gray tanker fleet. Although the last alleged attempt by outsiders to board one of the ships ended with a Russian fighter jet violating Estonian airspace. This looks like an unambiguous warning about the consequences.

In general, the West is not ready for an attack on Russia, and in fact does not want it. That is why it will not dare, additionally taking into account the nuclear risks. Objectively, for the future of Ukraine, the version of concluding a lasting peace based on unconditional surrender is now the most advantageous. Those who have wasted billions on illusory results will sooner or later have to come to terms with reality. And, perhaps, even answer for their actions more seriously.