What seemed impossible has been achieved: a visit by a European delegation, Trump's negotiations with Zelensky, and a seemingly pervasive course towards ending the war. Nevertheless, nothing has changed yet in the context of the ceasefire, as Russia's military aggression in Ukraine continues.
What result did European intervention in Washington bring, writes Deutsche Welle.
Details
So far, it's a dance on thin ice. Europe has shown unity against Trump for the first time. A delegation of Western countries appropriately arrived in Washington and likely prevented communication discrepancies between representatives of Ukraine and the USA. However, Europe has still not particularly succeeded in independently formulating conditions and defining frameworks.
(Europe) does not control the levers of geostrategic power. Trump can change his mind at any moment
Despite the seemingly successful, breakthrough visit to the USA, essentially nothing has changed yet.
Putin seeks to impose peace on his terms, which will force Ukraine to make territorial concessions. He will not accept NATO forces as a security guarantee for peace in Ukraine - the idea of this, which appeared after the summit in Alaska, was initially a misunderstanding. And in general, we still do not know what exactly was discussed and agreed upon there.
The conflict resolution has been postponed. For understandable reasons.
Recall:
UNN reported, citing Bloomberg Economics analytics:
A quick peace agreement remains unlikely due to significant differences between Kyiv and Moscow.
DW wonders if what happened is the "last push" of foreign policy based on international law, against the "big brother" mentality that decides everything and ultimately gets its way?
And what if Putin now says:
No, thank you
He is not interested in a truce, this has been clear for many months, - adds the author of the material.
And there is no certainty that he even wants peace. In any case, while negotiations were underway in Washington, the Russian Armed Forces launched new airstrikes.
A lot has happened these days, but much looks contradictory. Some things don't fit into a single picture, and the game is being played on several levels – publicly and behind the scenes.
Recall
French President Emmanuel Macron stated that the next 15 days are critical for determining Ukraine's security guarantees. This will happen after a series of high-level negotiations scheduled at the White House.