Analysts at the ISW warn that Vladimir Putin is uninterested in concluding the war in Ukraine and aims to capture the entire country. Despite his claims of readiness for peace negotiations, experts doubt his commitment. Analysts believe that Putin is using negotiations to extract concessions from the US while not engaging meaningfully with Ukraine. While plans to occupy the four Oblasts are complicated by operational challenges, Putin's broader ambitions remain unchanged. He is committed to undermining Ukraine's sovereignty and reasserting Russian dominance over the region.
The Kremlin has attempted to set the pace and sequence of negotiations about temporary ceasefires and a permanent peace in Ukraine since the start of the US effort to hold negotiations to end the war in February 2025.
Putin's efforts to posture himself as amenable to US peace proposals and meaningful negotiations while refusing to meet with Zelenskyy in the near term are attempts to obfuscate the reality that Putin remains uninterested in ending his war.
Russia's occupation of the four oblasts is neither inevitable nor imminent, as Russian forces will face serious operational obstacles in what are likely to be multi-year endeavours.
Putin remains committed to destroying the Ukrainian state, identity, and culture and subjugating the nation under Russian control.
Collection
[
|
...
]