Diplomacy over Ukraine war is about weapons more than peace talks

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy as he arrives at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in London on Tuesday. Wires

by EDWARD WONG AND MARC SANTORA
September 14, 2024

KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for a new peace summit in November, one open to participation by Russia. American and European officials privately wonder whether the Ukrainian and Russian militaries are so exhausted that they will pause fighting. And Western diplomats are discussing what kind of defense alliance their nations could promise Ukraine to help reach a settlement, officials say.

That kind of background chatter would seem to indicate a greater willingness by Ukraine and its allies to eventually engage in peace talks with Russia. But the most urgent diplomacy taking place now — and discussed with intensity this week in Kyiv, Washington and London — is about shaping the battlefield in Ukraine’s favor.

Ukrainian and Western officials say President Vladimir Putin still shows no signs of being willing to engage in peace talks in good faith. American and European officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy, have made clear over the last week that they are operating on the idea that Ukraine must consolidate and expand its gains on the battlefield in order to prod Putin toward the negotiating table — and to have meaningful leverage if talks start.