Russian opposition expert Morozov outlines three key aspects of Putin's potential communications with Washington

Morozov shared his opinion in an interview with Espreso.

"There are three fundamental points regarding Putin and potential communications with Washington. First, there is no framework for ending the war from either side, not even a concept of a ceasefire. This has been discussed multiple times, and many experts have written about it. Even in the pro-Kremlin Forbes, Vladimir Frolov published a very good article showing that there is no structure for ending the war," noted Alexander Morozov.

In his opinion, the second point is that Putin clearly indicates his intention to continue the war until he achieves his goals. We haven't heard any suggestion from him or his spokespeople of a possible compromise. Normally, there should be signals or intellectuals proposing a way out, but there's nothing of the sort.

"The third point is this: Trump sees himself as a mediator in a potential settlement. But for the Kremlin, Trump is part of the war, and this is a fundamental point. So, if Trump were to visit Putin, it wouldn’t be in Helsinki—since it’s no longer neutral and part of NATO—but perhaps in Austria. The conversation would go something like this: 'Vladimir, let’s end the war.' And the response would be: 'Of course, Donald, let’s end it. Stop funding Ukraine, and the war will end immediately.' That’s it. From the Kremlin’s perspective, the American administration is the source of the war," commented the political analyst.

He added that if Trump truly wanted to end the war within 100 days or even 24 months, he would need to build a new coalition for negotiations.

"Biden has built a democracy alliance with 60 or 160 countries ready to participate in global democratic development, while also supporting Ukraine. Trump, on the other hand, would need to create a negotiation alliance with countries like India, Saudi Arabia, and Austria, which would act as a peacekeeping European force. This alliance would attempt to offer a negotiation process, which Putin could accept," Morozov concluded.

• On January 7, Trump stated that Putin intends to meet with him, but ruled out a possible meeting before the inauguration.
• Retired General Keith Kellogg, the special envoy for resolving the war in Ukraine, has been tasked with ending the war within 100 days of Donald Trump’s inauguration.
• On January 10, Reuters reported that newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that preparations are underway for his meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.