Putin shows no interest in ceasefire and pushes to crush Ukrainian statehood – ISW

Specialists of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) note that the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin demonstrates his disinterest in a negotiated ceasefire and continues to seek to destroy Ukrainian statehood.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that.

"Putin continues to make it clear that he is not interested in a negotiated ceasefire and seeks to achieve his goal of destroying Ukrainian statehood," the report said.

Bloomberg reported on October 30 that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić spoke with Putin for the first time in two and a half years in early October 2024.

Vučić said that he raised the topic of a ceasefire in Ukraine, to which Putin replied that Russia would fulfill all the goals of its "special military operation" in Ukraine, which, according to ISW, are equivalent to the destruction of Ukrainian statehood and power.

Experts recall that Putin openly rejected any negotiated ceasefire during a press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on July 5, arguing that a ceasefire would allow Ukraine to regroup and rearm.

"A negotiated ceasefire on current lines and under current circumstances will only benefit Russia and will afford the Kremlin time to further radicalize and militarize Russian society against Ukraine and the Russian military time to rest and reconstitute, likely before conducting a future attack on Ukraine," ISW analysts write.

ISW key findings as of October 31:

• North Korea and Russia signed an agreement on October 30 to cooperate in the sphere of digital communications — the latest development in Russian-North Korean cooperation likely aimed at enhancing the Kremlin's digital authoritarianism tools to increase domestic repressions.
• The South Korean government reportedly intends to send an unspecified number of South Korean personnel to Ukraine to monitor North Korean troops.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to communicate that he is uninterested in a negotiated ceasefire and is committed to achieving his goal of destroying Ukrainian statehood.
• Ukraine's Western partners continue to provide military aid to Ukraine and ensure future aid provisions over the long term.
• The Russian military command continues to commit seriously wounded personnel to highly attritional infantry-led "meat" assaults in the Kurakhove direction as Russian President Vladimir Putin attempts to posture himself as profoundly concerned with the medical treatment of Russian veterans.
• On October 31, the Moldovan Constitutional Court confirmed the passing of the October 20 European Union (EU) referendum with a 50.72 percent turnout rate.
• Russian forces recently advanced near Kupyansk, Svatove, Pokrovsk, Kurakhove, and Vuhledar, and Ukrainian troops recently regained lost positions near Kurakhove.

For reference:

It is essential to mention that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, stated at the BRICS summit that Türkiye's representative at the September session of the UN General Assembly in New York received a proposal from Ukraine concerning the Russian Federation. He then relayed this information to the Kremlin.

It's noteworthy that Putin and his representatives have previously made statements depicting Russia as open to negotiations to resolve the war in Ukraine. However, these talks have not happened due to Kyiv's alleged unwillingness.

In fact, Putin demands Kyiv's refusal to join NATO and international recognition of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson regions, and Crimea as Russian territories.

In his turn, Zelensky, in response to the proposal of an alleged peaceful resolution of the war by the leader of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, stated that such conditions are an ultimatum that cannot be trusted. The head of state also compared Putin's actions with the leader of Nazi Germany, Hitler.