More and more Ukrainians are open to peace talks

On July 31, the American newspaper New York Times published an analysis that showsthat more and more Ukrainians are open to peace talks. The text begins by showing a 61-year-old Ukrainian woman who often travels with her mother to the center of Kiev in memory of the many Ukrainian soldiers who died when the Russians took invasion of Ukraine. She wants a bitter defeat for the Kremlin. But she also says, according to the New York Times: “Better a bad peace than a good war.”

The New York Times notes that more and more Ukrainians are ready for an agreement with Russia and the start of peace talks, although it is not clear exactly what compromise the Ukrainians would make with the side of the Russia. Giving up land, be it Crimea, is still unpopular. Nevertheless, the idea that one cannot negotiate with Russia is spreading slowly, according to the New York Times.

New surveys with different results than last year

The New York Times continues: “In mid-July, a poll by the independent Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA found that about 44 percent of Ukrainian civilians supported the start of negotiations official with Russia. On July 23, the Kiev Institute of International Sociology released a poll showing that almost a third of Ukrainians would agree to give some territories to Russia to end the war. That is more than three times higher than the previous year.”

A 28-year-old Ukrainian woman is represented in the text as having a husband who is fighting at the front. She asks, “So many people died, and for what?” Then, according to the New York Times, she goes on to say, “I want it to end, at least somehow, because I have a son and he doesn’t want him to grow up.” up in a time of war like this.”

“A Contract with the Devil”

Attitudes towards a diplomatic solution are also changing at the level of the Ukrainian leadership, the New York Times wrote. Ukraine is concerned that Donald Trump may become president of the US and stop supporting Ukrainian troops. There are also concerns that Germany will include military aid to Ukraine in its 2025 budget.

Perhaps that is one reason why the president of Ukraine said in an interview with the BBC that Russia had to be at the table at the next peace conference. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian leadership is concerned that Vladimir Putin may only be willing to make peace if his conditions are met. In other words, Ukraine would have to give up large parts of its territory and agree not to join NATO and the EU. That would be like “making a deal with the devil,” a senior Ukrainian official said, according to the New York Times. A majority of Ukrainians are still opposed to handing over land to Russia.

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