The ISW Briefing Room: Episode 40

To begin ceasefire talks, Putin is demanding that Kyiv recognize Russia’s territorial claims over eastern and southern Ukraine – including territory that Russia does not currently occupy; that Ukraine demilitarize; and that Ukraine pledge not to join NATO. These extreme conditions are neither legitimate nor reasonable. They are tantamount to Ukraine’s total capitulation, violations of its territorial integrity, and the destruction of Ukraine’s sovereignty. Nicole Wolkov examines how Putin is attempting to deceive the Ukraine’s backers into abandoning key principles of international law and shift Western perceptions about how the war should end in Russia’s favor.

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