West unofficially gives Zelenskyy military ultimatum

Bild writes about this, citing sources in government circles in Germany and the US. 

“With the help of new weapons, they want to give Ukraine a chance to recapture more occupied territories by the fall. If the counteroffensive fails, the pressure on Kyiv to negotiate with the Kremlin will increase,” the publication notes.

Speaking to journalists, Norbert Röttgen, the Bundestag's Foreign Policy Committee Chairman and a member of the CDU, warned against forcing Ukraine to make concessions: “Whoever is pushing President Zelenskyy to negotiate with Putin now will cause long-lasting discord in Europe.”

“These are dangerous illusions” that are 'splitting Europe', he added, noting that a peace deal with Putin would leave Ukraine under Russian control forever.

Another expert, speaking to journalists, said: “Russia has repeatedly emphasized that the starting point of any peace talks should be the recognition of Russian sovereignty over the four annexed Ukrainian territories... If Western governments make their support for Ukraine conditional on negotiations, they are driving Ukraine into a Russian trap.”

• In November 2022, at the G20 summit in Bali, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented a 10-point 'Peace Formula'.