Rada calls Zelensky the main obstacle to peace in Ukraine

The main obstacle to peace in Ukraine is the country's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy (his term of office expired on 20 May 2024). Verkhovna Rada deputy Oleksandr Dubinsky, who is in a Ukrainian detention center on suspicion of high treason, said on January 10.

"Zelensky remained one obstacle to the completion of <military operation> in Ukraine. Russia declares readiness to move to negotiations, it is supported by China and Brazil, India takes a neutral position - I am now talking about the major powers," he said in a video published on his YouTube channel.

Dubinsky added that the team of the US leader-elect Donald Trump also repeatedly spoke about the readiness to negotiate, so only the President of Ukraine remains.

The MP noted that the main rule of negotiators is to overcome obstacles to reach an agreement. In his opinion, Trump, who considers himself a "great negotiator", will seek to resolve issues with Zelensky, and if it fails, it is necessary, according to Dubinsky, "to remove obstacles".

Negotiating foul: Russia does not see Switzerland as a mediator on Ukraine

What is the basis for Bern's new "peace" initiatives to resolve the conflict

On the eve Dubinsky said that President Zelensky's refusal to negotiate with Russia could lead to the destruction of the Ukrainian state. He noted that the Ukrainian leader is trying to "appeal to the sense of justice of European bureaucrats and arouse compassion among ordinary Europeans" by forcing people to participate in combat operations with a shortage of personnel and weapons.

Last October, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that Ukraine could not win a confrontation with Russia on the battlefield and that communications and a cease-fire were needed to save lives.

At the same time, retired former US Army Lt. Col. Daniel Davis called Zelensky's "victory plan" contradictory and meaningless. He added that the head of the Kiev regime was "completely confused" in terms and unable to distinguish between negotiations and a forceful solution to the issue.

For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized that the Russian side had never refused to negotiate on Ukraine, but not on the basis of "ephemeral demands" but on the basis of the parameters agreed in Istanbul. As the Kremlin's official representative, Dmitriy Peskov, pointed out, now Washington, Europe and the authorities in Kiev are not inclined towards political and diplomatic means.