Still No Sign of Peace Talks Despite Increase in US-Russia Dialogue

The Kremlin said Wednesday it's not interacting with the US about potential peace talks

Despite the increase in dialogue between the US and Russia and a shift in messaging from the Biden administration, there’s still no sign of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.

Russia has continued its heavy strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, and the Kremlin said Wednesday that it hasn’t had any interaction with the US about the subject of peace talks, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

Vasily Nebenzya, Russia’s representative to the UN, said that Russia will continue its “special military operation” until the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is ready for talks.

Nebenzya said Russia will keep up the military pressure “until the Kiev regime takes a realistic position, which will make it possible to discuss and try to settle those problems, which have prompted us to launch the special military operation.”

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, the highest ranking officer in the US military, has voiced support for a diplomatic solution, but his view is not popular among other Biden administration officials.

According to a report from POLITICO, after Milley first made a public call for negotiations, the Biden administration reassured Ukraine that peace talks don’t need to happen and that they would continue supporting the fight against Russia.

While back-channel talks are always possible, the Russian ambassador to the UK said Tuesday that there have been no “informal negotiations” between Russia and Ukraine. “Informal negotiations are not going on, because Kiev is very stubborn, Kiev has an illusion that it can win this war. It is pure illusion, it is not possible, but Kiev can not reject having weapons and money from the West,” Andrey Kelin told BBC.

Zelensky recently softened his public stance on negotiations with Russia after pressure from the US. He dropped the condition that he wouldn’t talk with Russia as long as Vladimir Putin is president but still demanded a Russian withdrawal, reparations, and war crimes trials to take place before negotiations could begin.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.