Podolyak: Negotiations with Russia currently on pause

"Objectively speaking, the negotiation process is really on pause. Why? There are several reasons. Russia does not demonstrate the key – the understanding of today's processes in the world and its [Russia’s] extremely negative role," Mykhailo Podolyak, Adviser to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine told the media, Ukrinform reports.

Second, according to Podolyak, Russia does not understand that the war is no longer waged according to the rules, schedule or plans of Russia in any sense, while the professional resistance of Ukraine only ramps up.

The adviser to the President’s Office is convinced that Russia will not achieve any of its goals.

Third, he noted, Russia cannot give up propaganda in the domestic market, and therefore the political elite is afraid to tell the truth that the war must be stopped on completely different terms than originally stated.

The adviser to the President’s Office stressed that Russian politicians preferred to continue negotiations as an element of their propaganda only for domestic use.

“Finally, the key point. Russia absolutely wants to see in action all the packages of international economic sanctions and finally understand the real ‘combat capability’ of its army, as well as lose the remnants of its reputation. This, in my opinion, is the strategic goal of the Russians: all or nothing. Therefore, it makes no sense to prevent the collapse of this bizarre ‘empire’,” Podolyak said.

In his opinion, the Ukrainian delegation now does not consider the issue "to withdraw or not to withdraw" from the negotiation process as only expediency and specificity matter at the current stage.

"If there is specificity, political negotiations will continue," the adviser to the President’s Office added.

The last round of face-to-face talks between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations took place in Istanbul on March 29. The Ukrainian delegation then put forward a number of proposals to end the war, including the signing of an international agreement on security guarantees for Ukraine.