Media learned about the desire of AFU soldiers to reach a truce with Russia in 2025

Soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) hope for a truce with Russia in 2025. This was reported by The Washington Post on December 27.

Speaking about a possible ceasefire in 2025, soldiers of the 33rd mechanized brigade of the AFU said they would welcome such news, but are skeptical that it will come soon.

"We used to talk about victory, but now it's unclear. <...> No one feels the end is near. Fighting spirit is falling lower and lower, it's getting worse and worse," said a deputy battalion commander named Kirill.

As the publication notes, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (his term expired on May 20) recently said that active hostilities could end next year and that Kiev would work to diplomatically return territories liberated by members of the Russian Armed Forces.

To make matters worse, some Ukrainian soldiers have expressed fears that the U.S. will end its critical arms support if Kiev does not agree to territorial concessions. Others acknowledged that they are ceding land now, even as they continue to fight.

"My fear is that we're just going to be abandoned <...> that support and supplies from our allies will just stop. If that doesn't happen, we won't have anything to fight with," another soldier noted.

A soldier named Felix said the fighters in his unit are exhausted. He also expressed hope that the inauguration of newly elected US President Donald Trump in January will be a turning point in the Ukrainian conflict towards negotiations.

"This can't go on like this. We are retreating. And they are advancing further and further. What kind of victory will there be? <...> If our officials can't put an end to this, maybe Trump can do it," he added.

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Earlier, on December 25, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that there will be no easy settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. He noted that Russia needs to see concrete serious proposals to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, adding that the response to the incoming proposals will be based on national interests and the goals of the EAS.

The day before, Trump's special envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said that he does not want a repeat of the situation with the Minsk agreements, but wants a fair, sustainable and secure world. In the Rada, commenting on these words, said that this is bad news for Zelensky.

At the same time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there was no movement towards openness to negotiations on the part of Ukraine. He specified that Russia was open to resolving the situation, but Kiev did not demonstrate its readiness.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the background of the aggravated situation in the region.