The political scientist assessed Zelensky's reaction to Putin's peace initiatives.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has given his American counterpart Donald Trump the opportunity to replace Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky. This was stated by political analyst Ivan Mezyuho in an interview with Izvestia on May 12.

According to him, by offering Ukraine the resumption of negotiations in Istanbul, Putin clearly showed that Russia does not need mediation from the European Union (EU) countries. The political scientist noted that the EU and the UK are unable to provide mediation services in resolving the conflict, including due to the fact that they directly support one of the parties to the conflict.

"In addition, with his initiative, Vladimir Putin gave the opportunity to the President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, to put Vladimir Zelensky in his place. And judging by Vladimir Zelensky's statements, Putin's strategy has succeeded," the expert stressed.

He recalled that in his first statement after the Russian proposal, Zelensky began to talk about the need for a cease-fire before the negotiations in Istanbul. However, soon the Ukrainian leader agreed to a meeting on May 15 in Turkey.

"Thus, Vladimir Putin, as it were, gave a pass to Donald Trump so that he could finally put things in order with the leader of the governing bodies of the Kiev regime, which has recently been more oriented towards Europe rather than its American master," Mezyuho said.

The political scientist added that no conflict can end without the participation of the conflicting parties in negotiations.

"If Ukraine is really interested in establishing peace, it should go to these negotiations. There is no doubt that Ukraine will delay the negotiation process, because Vladimir Zelensky does not see himself as the head of Ukraine outside the framework of hostilities. He is the president of military operations, not the president of peace," he concluded.

Taming the fire: is Kiev ready for direct negotiations with the Russian Federation

So far, the Ukrainian authorities continue to issue ultimatums, repeating threats from Europe.

On May 11, during a press conference, Putin announced that Russia was offering Ukraine to resume direct talks in Istanbul on May 15. On the same day, Zelensky responded with an ultimatum – he demanded a cease-fire from May 12.

Trump called on Ukraine to accept the Russian proposal immediately, after which Zelensky wrote on the Telegram channel that he would come to Turkey on May 15 for talks. Later, he posted a video in which he re-indicated his intention to come.

Former American intelligence officer and analyst Scott Ritter, in an interview with Izvestia, noted that Putin's proposal is a brilliant maneuver and removes the issue of a 30-day truce from the agenda. He added that the president's statement returns the initiative to Russia, allowing it to dictate terms to the Ukrainian-European-American bloc.