The US and Russian foreign ministers have met and chaired their first high-level talks in three years. The results of the meeting were assessed by both sides as a success and made both sides basically satisfied. The two sides discussed both reshaping bilateral relations and facilitating negotiations between the US and Russia on a political solution to end the conflict in Ukraine - right before the conflict enters its fourth year.
For the first time since the conflict broke out 3 years ago, it revealed the opportunity to end the conflict with a political solution, using diplomatic negotiations to create peace. This move comes as a surprise and stems from the new US administration's policy adjustments directly towards Russia and towards the conflict in Ukraine and further towards Ukraine, the EU and NATO.
As early as his election campaign, Donald Trump announced and pledged to end the conflict in Ukraine if he returned to power. The new US administration has changed its approach to seeking a political solution to end the conflict, realizing that without strong and extensive external impact, Ukraine, the EU and NATO will refuse to enter peace negotiations with Russia and Russia will not be ready to enter peace negotiations with the other side when the prerequisites have not been met.
After 3 years of fighting, the situation on the ground is that both sides have gains and losses, both sides have wins and losses and one side cannot or cannot defeat the other side with military means. Ukraine still receives great support from Western countries in the political, financial and military sector. Russia has proven that it can still hold on despite increased military activity in Ukraine and despite increased isolation, embargo and sanctions on politics, economics, finance and trade by the Western bloc.
The US has become the only external actor currently with enough documents and capacity in practice to open a diplomatic negotiation process between the direct and indirect stakeholders on a political solution to help end the conflict and restore peace between Ukraine and Russia. The reason is that the US plays the most decisive role in providing military and financial aid to Ukraine in the conflict with Russia. If it continues or reduces or stops this aid to Ukraine, the US can directly affect the developments or the final outcome of the conflict in Ukraine. In other words, the US has many cards and ways to encourage or pressure Ukraine, the EU and NATO as well as other allies to accept the approach of entering peace negotiations with Russia to end the conflict in Ukraine.
To encourage Russia, the new US administration has adjusted its policy towards Russia, Ukraine, the EU and NATO in a very profound way for Russia. Thanks to that, Russia and the US have just had a very important and meaningful connection.
