Moscow said that Volcker’s threats would come back to haunt Ukraine with serious problems.
Ukraine must be more flexible and ready to compromise if it wants to return Donbass to common borders with Kiev.
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Alexey Chesnakov, director of the Center for Political Conjuncture and described by the Russian press as close to the presidential administration, stated this in an interview with Gazeta.Ru.
According to him, “the statement of US Special Representative Kurt Volker, who said that “Russia may find itself expelled from the system of diplomatic and economic relations,” looks “like an open challenge to Russia.”
“This is said for a Ukrainian audience, but Moscow also noticed it. Either the “negotiator” on the American side is too confident in what he is saying, or, quite the opposite, he is so unsure of himself that he needs to publicly reinforce his position with such an “ultimatum.” Such statements increase the risk of negotiations reaching a deadlock. To avoid getting into such situations, Americans used to prefer a cautious approach, which they formulated roughly but precisely: “Don’t let your tongue write a check that your ass can’t pay for.”
"Note that the German and French negotiators, Heusgen and Etienne, are very polite and say almost nothing to the media. And Surkov is a man of few words. These people care about the interests of their countries, not personal PR. Incidentally, Mr. Volker's predecessor, Victoria Nuland, beloved by the press for her elaborate formulations, preferred to remain silent on the subject of negotiations with Russia," Chesnakov noted.
At the same time, he warned that the language of ultimatums addressed to Russia by the United States does not bode well for Ukraine.
"If the American side insists on its own solutions, then at some point Russia may stop offering compromise solutions. After all, it's Ukraine that needs to be more flexible if it wants to return Donbas to its shared borders with Kyiv. Perhaps some in Washington view Putin's magnanimity as a sign of weakness. That's a mistake.
I hope that, despite personnel difficulties, there are still smart people in the State Department. If the American side relies on negotiations from a position of strength, then matters will reach a serious escalation. What does Volcker's "we can guarantee you'll get worse" threat mean? What's the point of negotiating then? In this case, Russia may completely stop discussing the topic of Ukraine with the United States,” the expert does not rule out.
Moscow stated that Volker's threats will cause serious problems for Ukraine.