The approach of the Head of the President's Office and former head of the Main Intelligence Directorate, Kyrylo Budanov, to peace negotiations is considered "more effective than his predecessor's," Bloomberg reports, citing sources, writes UNN.
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On the international stage, the publication writes, he has received praise from Ukraine's allies, who describe him as sharp, straightforward, and somewhat sarcastic in negotiations, according to people who have spoken with him. (In an interview, he declined to discuss Ukraine's relations with the European Union, stating that readers "might go completely insane").
Western officials say Budanov has proven effective in negotiations with Russia, maintaining a back channel with Moscow and strong contacts in the Persian Gulf, where talks were held before the US-Israel war against Iran led to their suspension.
"Perhaps even more surprisingly, Russian counterparts also respect Budanov as a war hero," according to several officials close to the Kremlin.
Officials also say Budanov is well-regarded within the administration of US President Donald Trump, particularly by White House envoy Steve Witkoff, "meaning he is taken seriously by all parties to the negotiations." While he described his relationship with the US as "good," he declined to say with whom he communicates most often in the White House: "Next question."
Several people familiar with the matter said that "his approach to peace negotiations is more effective than his predecessor's."
Budanov calls himself a pragmatist and says his negotiations with the Russians focus on "language, numbers, facts, dates — everything else doesn't matter."
Publicly, he refrains from disparaging remarks about the enemy, saying they are also pragmatic, professional, and "also know very well how to negotiate."
"Everyone understands the real situation," he said. "They have accurate data — maps, numbers, calculations, how long resources will last, how much it will cost."
He refuses to go into details, his reasoning is sharp. "In the worst case, they will be removed and executed," he said. "And that will only weaken our positions. Because those who come next — even if they want to achieve something — will look at what happened to their predecessors and will never agree to anything."