FLASH
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Since Ukraine has accepted US proposals for a 30-day ceasefire, the pressure is now on the Kremlin to decide whether it too will accept President Donald Trump's plan to end the war in Ukraine, even temporarily.
Russian officials are hinting that there will be contacts with US representatives "in the coming days", but have not stated whether the terms of the ceasefire, set out in US-Ukraine talks in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, will be accepted.
For Moscow, this is a moment of truth and may require awkward compromises if it is serious about peace.
The Kremlin has long claimed it is open to negotiations to end the conflict, while insisting that it must achieve its ambitious war goals, such as securing control over all of Ukraine's annexed territories.
Just last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin strongman who launched this brutal war three years ago, swore before a group of widows and mothers of slain Russian soldiers that Moscow would never “surrender.”
Pro-war extremists in Russia, who have at times been encouraged by the Kremlin, may see the ceasefire as a betrayal. But a partial withdrawal may be inevitable.
Even if Russian negotiators manage to impose their conditions on the ceasefire – for example, the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Kursk, a small pocket of Russia captured by Ukraine where heavy fighting is currently taking place – it is difficult to imagine that Russia’s larger territorial demands, let alone the goal of pushing NATO away from its western border, will be met.
This could also turn into a crucial turning point for Putin's surprisingly warm relationship with Trump, who, in return for recent concessions and praise, can now expect the Kremlin leader to show willingness.
In fact, “the ball is in their court now,” was exactly what US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said of the Russians after concluding talks with Ukrainian officials in Jeddah. Just days earlier, Trump had claimed that the Russians had “all the cards in their hands.” Now, intentionally or unintentionally, he may have called Putin’s bluff./ CNN
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