War in Ukraine: calendar, discussions… why peace negotiations could take place “as early as this winter”

It is a date marked with a red cross on the calendar: the arrival of Donald Trump at the White House was to announce the – expected – organization of peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. The Republican promised to end the conflict “in less than 24 hours”. The inauguration of the American tycoon is scheduled for January 20, but kyiv and Moscow could be brought together around the table before then. In any case, this is what Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk explains. The head of government announced that the first discussions could “start” this winter.

Poland could well act as intermediary between Russia and Ukraine: Warsaw, kyiv's faithful ally in the context of this armed conflict, must in fact hold the rotating presidency of the European Union from next January. But the schedule is already busy for the head of the Polish government: Donald Tusk spoke this Tuesday, December 10 with the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky on this issue. “Our presidency will be co-responsible, among other things, for what the political landscape will be, for what the situation will be perhaps during the (peace) negotiations, which, again there are question marks, will begin maybe in winter this year,” commented Donald Tusk.

“Work together to end this war”

The time has come for consultation: Emmanuel Macron must in turn go to Poland this Thursday, December 12. The French president will then take stock with Donald Tusk of the discussions which took place in Paris on the sidelines of the inauguration of Notre-Dame Cathedral with Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky. In the words of the French head of state, the meeting was “brief but important”. The Ukrainian president expressed this Tuesday, December 10, his “deep gratitude” to Donald Trump for his “strong determination” and his desire to end the conflict. “The most important thing is to work together to end this war – this is our top priority. At the meeting in Paris, this is exactly what we focused on,” the Ukrainian president commented on the network social

As part of these negotiations, Russia has constantly insisted that it wants kyiv to cede some of its territories: the four regions in the south and east that the Russian armed forces partially occupy today. Moscow also wants Ukraine to renounce joining NATO. “Potential agreements must take into account the security interests of the Russian Federation, be based on new territorial realities and, above all, address the root causes of the conflict,” the Kremlin explained in a statement released afterward. of a meeting between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Vladimir Putin.