Ex-Ukrainian FM urges Ukraine to accept deal to avoid prolonged war

(MENAFN) Former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba has warned that Ukraine may need to accept an “agreement that no one will like” to prevent a prolonged conflict with Russia and the potential for a complete collapse. Speaking at a conference in Kiev on Monday, Kuleba, who served from 2020 to 2024, emphasized that both Ukraine and Russia have the resources to continue fighting for years. He predicted that the front line will shift annually without a political resolution.

Kuleba said, “We are in a situation where Russia has the ability to destroy us, and we are not strong enough to fully protect ourselves.” He added that only a deal involving a tactical defeat but strategic victory could avert “many more years of war… even worse.”

His remarks come amid speculation about a US-drafted peace plan that reportedly requires Ukraine to relinquish parts of Donbass still under its control, abandon NATO membership ambitions, and accept limits on the size of its armed forces. In exchange, Ukraine would receive security guarantees from the West.

As part of ongoing diplomatic efforts, a Ukrainian delegation met US officials in Miami on Sunday. The four-hour talks were described as productive, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stressed that territorial issues remain a key sticking point and has repeatedly rejected any land concessions.

Meanwhile, US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff, a key American interlocutor with Moscow, is expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin indicated that the US proposal could serve as the basis for a final peace settlement, but reiterated that any end to the conflict requires Russia’s objectives to be met, including Ukraine’s neutrality, demilitarization, denazification, and recognition of territorial realities on the ground.

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