Lavrov said that the time for negotiation has come, “whether we like it or not,” adding that the West will soon see a serious decline in its ability to “direct the global economy,” and it will be forced to negotiate regardless of its desire to do so.
On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin had confirmed that his country was ready to negotiate with all parties to the Ukrainian conflict, but he returned to say that Kyiv and its Western backers had refused to engage in talks.
Putin added in an interview with the official Russia 1 channel, “We are ready to negotiate with all interested parties on acceptable solutions, but it is up to them. We are not the ones who refuse to negotiate, but they reject it.”
acceptable solutions
Observers believe that the selection of phrases that carry conciliatory contents in the statements of Putin and Lavrov, such as referring to acceptable solutions, and that the time for negotiation has come, expresses indirect Russian messages to the Western side, to the effect that after nearly a year of indirect war between the two sides in the Ukrainian theater, it has been proven that Military force and economic sanctions have failed to favor one party over another.
Russia’s calls suggest that the solution is negotiation, taking into account the concerns and interests of each party, reaching compromise solutions that crystallize in the context of climates of dialogue and discussion, and stopping the Western bet on Russia’s military drain in the Ukrainian quagmire.
Feelers
On the other hand, other analysts believe that Russia is trying, through this, to feel the pulse of the other side, because these negotiating calls may not necessarily reflect a “diplomatic and peaceful tendency”, but rather an attempt to cover up what is described as the “Russian failure” in achieving strategically important military victories in Ukraine, due to the West’s qualitative armament support for Kiev.
The stick and the carrot
The researcher and expert on European and international affairs, Maher Al-Hamdani, said in an interview with “Sky News Arabia” that Moscow is practicing the policy of carrots and sticks. Europeans, especially those affected by Washington’s policies towards the Ukrainian crisis.
Al-Hamdani believes that Moscow is referring, through this, to the energy and food crises left behind by the policy of imposing sanctions on Russia, especially as winter is at its peak at the present time, in light of the scarcity of heating gas, which has become a burden on the Europeans.
The researcher added that the Western popular mood tends in general to the need to end the Ukrainian war in a peaceful manner as soon as possible, “and through negotiations exclusively, and the Russian decision-maker plays on this chord skillfully.”
And he continued, “In the end, the solution to any crisis and any war is through negotiations, and Moscow may be betting on this great discontent and considers that the time has come to present the option of negotiations again and bring it back to the fore, and thus throw the ball into the court of Kyiv and Western capitals.”
The conditions are not favorable
For his part, the political writer and expert on Russian affairs, Bassam al-Bunni, said in an interview with “Sky News Arabia” that despite the statements of the various parties to the conflict in the Ukrainian crisis about the necessity of dialogue, and that any military conflict ends with sitting at the negotiating table, “there is no Reality is a favorable ground for launching negotiations to achieve a diplomatic settlement to the conflict.
And he added, “The positions of Kyiv and Washington are completely inconsistent with Moscow’s positions, visions, and negotiating agenda. When the Kremlin and the foreign ministry refer to Russia’s openness to dialogue, they mean a comprehensive dialogue with the West and the United States in particular, especially on Russia’s security guarantees.”
A crisis of confidence
The researcher explained that “even if Washington agreed to serious and comprehensive negotiations, there is a crisis of confidence between the two parties, and the Russians do not hide their lack of confidence in the West, especially after the statements of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said that the Minsk agreements in 2014 were only in order to give It’s time for Kyiv to put its cards in order and rearm its army against Russia.”
The researcher concludes that the dialogue will not lead to tangible results that contribute to resolving the crisis, in light of the current field and political positions and data, “and the gateway to a real negotiating climate on the Ukrainian crisis and the entire files of the Russian-Atlantic conflict, is for the West to reach a conviction of the impossibility of defeating Russia in Ukraine.”
He added, “At that time, it is possible to enter into a comprehensive negotiation package related to engineering the lines of contact and organizing competition and competition over areas of influence, and the shape of the new world based on multipolarity.”
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