The Serbian President claimed that the Russian ruler revealed in a telephone call that Russia continues to reject ceasefire options while pursuing its stated military goals.
Bloomberg reported that on 30 October, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic revealed Russian President Vladimir Putin had reaffirmed his commitment towards achieving “all goals” of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and showed no interest to negotiate a ceasefire.
The Institute for the Study of War assesses that Putin’s goals are “tantamount” to the destruction of Ukrainian government and statehood. They note that “a negotiated truce on current lines and in current circumstances will only be beneficial to Russia and will give the Kremlin more time to further militarize and radicalize Russian society against Ukraine, and the Russian military will have time to rest and reconstitute before launching a future attack on Ukraine.”
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a “special operation”, included the alleged goals of “denazification” and “demilitarization” – effectively demanding Ukraine’s surrender and cession of territory. Putin said that Ukraine would have to withdraw its troops from the territories it claims Russia has annexed in order for a ceasefire to begin. Ukraine’s President called this proposal a Hitlerian “ultimatum”.
Bloomberg reports that the conversation between Vucic, Putin and their respective governments took place in October. It was the first direct communication the two leaders had in over two and a quarter years. Vucic claimed that he tried to discuss a possible ceasefire in Ukraine during the call, but Putin was unmoved.
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