Russia's military weakness drives negotiation push for Ukraine's surrender — expert

Oleksii Izhak, expert at the National Institute for Strategic Studies, stated this on Espreso TV.

"I think that this whole story and the last round of negotiations, where diplomacy occasionally appears, was created by Russia to end the war as quickly as possible with a victory over Ukraine. That is, to defeat Ukraine as quickly as possible, because Russia no longer has the strength for war. They cannot end the war simply by a ceasefire, because it will be a defeat for them. They cannot end the war if Ukraine retains sovereignty over any territory, and even more so if it receives a European perspective. They cannot allow this, but it is also difficult for them to fight. Therefore, the Kremlin has found schemes where they tempt the United States with economic profits to simultaneously create pressure on Ukraine with the war," Izhak explained.

The expert emphasized that the war is entering a very dangerous phase, because Russia is currently in a desperate situation where it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to wage war.

"This strategy was designed to stop European support. That is why we are now observing this paradox, when the Russian Federation can no longer fight for a long time and at the same time they invent everything possible to defeat Ukraine faster. We live in a very dangerous situation when the Russian Federation is in a desperate situation where they need to find an option to force Ukraine to capitulate," he stressed.

• On Sunday evening, December 28, 2025, American President Donald Trump hosted his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy for 4 hours at the Mar-a-Lago residence (Florida, U.S.).