From Quora: Russia Wants to Negotiate
As expected: Russia is looking for negotiations to commence to put an end to its ill-fated war.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (above) discussed the possibility of negotiations between Russia and the West during an interview on Russian state television RIA Novosti reported Saturday. He said Russia is "always ready to listen to our Western colleagues if they make another request to organize a conversation."
He named two conditions the West would need to agree to for negotiations to be successful.
Lavrov said the West would need to "fully take into account the interests of the Russian Federation and its security." Russia, for years, has raised concerns about the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which the Kremlin views as a threat to its security interests.
Putin would likely demand Ukraine's neutrality during negotiations. Throughout the conflict, more Eastern European nations including Finland—which shares a border with Russia—have made efforts to join NATO, strengthening the organization and delivering a blow to Russia's sphere of influence. The U.S. has signaled reluctance to allow Ukraine's membership under current conditions. Putin still fails to see how it is his actions, not the West, that is driving Ukraine towards NATO. This condition may be a non-starter.
Secondly, Lavrov said the West would have to "offer us some serious approaches that will help defuse tensions.” This was fairly vague. He did not offer specifics as to how exactly the West could do. Russia has previously accused adversaries' of deepening tensions through their support of Ukraine and sanctions that have weakened Moscow's economy.
"If we are approached with realistic proposals based on the principles of equality and mutual respect of interests, aimed at finding compromises and a balance of interests of all countries in this region, we will not be the case, as it has always been in the past," Lavrov said.
It may also be a stall to provide Russia with time to regroup and prepare to continue the war.
Not mentioned is the return of all Ukrainian land or reparations.
The timing is curious:
-Right before Winter months
-Right before the new conscripts are scheduled to hit the front lines
-Right after Putin’s speech on the impact of the war on Russia’s economy
-Right after the mobilization has resulted in protests throughout the country
-Right after the US announced another aid package to Ukraine
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