Zelensky relies on international pressure to end the war this fall

Aware of the lack of good prospects on the front, and faced with the risk of military aid from some key allies waning, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyis working on a unilateral roadmap that aims to end the war this fall and relies on international pressure on Russia to achieve peace on terms acceptable to kyiv.

Through small pieces of information that journalists and analysts try to fit together as if it were a puzzle, the Ukrainian president has been giving details of an agenda that for now has its most solid element in the so-called ‘plan for victory’ that Zelensky has started to share with your key partner.

“I have built this plan on the premise that it can be made a reality thanks to our partners, not thanks to the will or lack of will of the Russian Federation,” the Ukrainian president said in an interview last week, days before he said that The war could end this fall if Ukraine’s allies put enough pressure on the Kremlin by offering additional military support to kyiv.

As revealed in his speech to the nation on Sunday, Zelensky revealed some details of the ‘plan for victory’ to the delegation of US congressmen with whom he met this weekend at an economic forum in which he participated. Italy.

Zelensky spoke for the first time about this ‘victory plan’ on August 27, when he explained that he plans to present this document to the still US President Joe Biden already the Republican and Democratic candidates to replace him, Donald Trump and Kamala Harrisin the elections of November.

Kursk as a key element

According to the Kiev leader, his plan is to deliver the document to the three this September. “The main point of this plan is to is to force Russia to end the war”he noted.

One of the main assets to achieve this, he said, will be the success of the Ukrainian operation in the Russian region of Kursk, where kyiv controls about 1,300 square kilometers a month after it launched its cross-border offensive.

“It seems that the intention behind the Kursk operation was to force Moscow to send troops there from Donbas, to boost morale in the country and, perhaps, “Force Putin to negotiate”Ukrainian analyst Volodymyr Dubovik told EFE. “But it doesn’t seem to be working.” Putin does not appear to be budging. “It seems that he is prepared for a long war,” he concludes.

In addition to the possibility of an exchange of occupied territories between kyiv and Moscow, The plan has an economic component and proposals on the role that kyiv should play in the international security architecture, Zelensky explained. The fourth pillar of the document details the measures to be taken to force Russia to end its military aggression against Ukraine.

In parallel with the presentation of this plan to its partners, kyiv is preparing to organize a second Peace Summit before the end of the year, which – unlike what happened in the first edition of this event, held in June in Switzerland – will be attended by without representation of Russia– the Russian Federation is being considered for invitation.

From the statements of Zelensky and other Ukrainian spokesmen it is clear that the objective of this second meeting is that the greatest number of countries possible should put pressure on Russia to accept a peace in the terms proposed by kyiv in the document – which may or may not be the so-called ‘plan for victory’ – that it will present at the summit.

The role of China and India

On the effectiveness of this pressure It largely depends on the position taken by powers close to Russia. as China or Indiakyiv is courting them insistently, but so far they have not shown themselves willing to use their influence with Moscow to force Russia to withdraw fully or partially from Ukraine as Zelensky has requested.

Zelensky’s efforts to find solutions to a conflict that seems to be at a standstill coincide with the rise in the polls of the percentage of Ukrainians willing to agree to negotiations with Russia.

Asked about the mood of Ukrainian society, sociologist Andrew Chernousov speaks of two phenomena. On the one hand, The number of those who want to end it is growing through dialogue to resolve the personal drama that the war has brought upon them, but the price of the Russian invasion is already too high for some Ukrainians, who would see the commitment as a betrayal.

“They would feel that having lost their homes, their relatives, having had to sacrifice their lives is in vain,” he said, referring to this segment of the population.

EFE