Russian International Affairs Council President Dmitry Trenin, as reported by TASS, told Vedomosti that, if the package of conditions that U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff brought were the same as those mentioned in the Western media, it is a non-starter for Russia. Rather, Moscow agreed to discuss not so much the settlement itself as possible ways to establish a security framework for Russia and Ukraine after the conflict ends. He explained: “By 2027, we will most likely still be in the midst of ongoing hostilities, though the US administration had certainly hoped to achieve tangible results by the end of this year.” He noted that it will still be the actual situation on the battlefield that will determine the future prospects of the negotiation process.

Nikolay Silayev, a leading researcher at the MGIMO Institute of International Relations, pointed out one positive element: that the current round of talks differs from previous ones because the agenda will include the issue of security guarantees for both Russia and Ukraine. This was not present during the Istanbul meetings of Russia and Ukraine.