Putin directly states his goals in war against Ukraine — political scientist

He shared his opinions on Espreso TV.

“Putin’s strategic goal is to continue the war against Ukraine. He has actually been speaking about this openly for a long time. Recently, he even stated that he has every ‘reason to believe we will defeat them.’ Essentially, that’s exactly what he is trying to do. Therefore, the outlook for this war is that he will continue fighting and is definitely not interested in a peaceful resolution,” Rozumnyi explained.

The political scientist noted that the composition of the Russian delegation in Turkey confirms the fact that the Kremlin has not abandoned its demands, which they have been expressing since 2022.

“Ukraine will continue to resist the aggressor and, in turn, defeat Putin’s regime. There are means for this, including economic sanctions and wearing down his army. All of this will be possible if our allies keep supporting us. Of course, diplomatic maneuvers are ongoing alongside this. This week, we saw examples of the diplomatic tactics used by the parties involved in this war. The latest move by the Russians was sending a delegation to Turkey, which was also in Istanbul in 2022. By this, they made it clear that their position has not changed and they expect the concessions Ukraine made back then,” he added.

Ukraine-Russia peace talks

In a nighttime address on May 11, Russian leader Vladimir Putin claimed he was ready for direct talks with Ukraine in Turkey next week, but he dismissed the idea of a 30-day truce. In response, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would keep working with both sides and predicted that the coming week would be “great.”

On May 12, the German government announced that if Russia did not agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine by the end of the day, European partners would begin preparations for new sanctions. In contrast, the Kremlin stated that “the language of ultimatums is unacceptable for Russia.”

Advisor to the head of the Ukrainian President's Office, Mykhailo Podolyak, said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would not meet with any Russian representative other than Vladimir Putin in Turkey on May 15. Later, Zelenskyy himself confirmed his personal visit to Turkey for a meeting with Putin.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the talks in Istanbul with Kyiv should recognize the "realities on the ground," including Russia’s incorporation of Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that if his meeting with the Russian leader takes place on May 15 in Turkey, the main topics of discussion will be a complete ceasefire and a full exchange of prisoners of war.

On the evening of May 14, the Russian Federation announced the composition of its delegation for talks with Ukraine in Istanbul.

Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov later stated that Russian leader Vladimir Putin will not be present during the talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Turkey on May 15.