Today, our negotiating team is returning after meetings in the United States with envoys of President Trump, and tomorrow morning I expect a full briefing on the documents that have been prepared. A great deal of work has been done – first and foremost on documents concerning security guarantees, as well as the 20 points of the main document – the basic framework discussed by the Ukrainian and American delegations. Rustem Umerov and Andrii Hnatov will present their reports tomorrow.

It is important that the American side be able to elicit a response from Russia – a genuine willingness by that state to focus on something other than aggression. Of course, after so many years – first of hybrid warfare and now of full-scale war – it is hard to believe that Putin is capable of living without killings and invasions. However, a reduction in the price of Russian oil, strong global sanctions, and the continuation of all other forms of pressure are precisely what will persuade even such a stubborn person. Putin wages war as long as he has the money to buy the loyalty of his inner circle and the Russian population, while at the same time paying for killings on the front line.