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Don’t bet much on word that Russia is “ready in principle” to resume three-way peace talks with Ukraine and the United States next month; after all, thugocrat Vladimir Putin has been ready to end the war since the day he started it . . . as long as his victim surrenders.
Maybe, just maybe, Moscow is signaling something positive, since that statement emerged after presidential envoy Steve Witkoff briefed Putin on the latest US ceasefire proposals, which he’d already cleared with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky and other allies at an Oslo sitdown the day before.
Indeed, Zelensky announced he’ll accept a cease-fire that freezes current lines in place, allowing Russia to continue occupying vast swathes of his nation.
On the other hand, Putin’s made plenty of ready-to-talk noises before, only to then demand unilateral concessions before any actual sitdown.
And his Witkoff sitdown looked mostly like a show of politeness that will likely mainly be remembered for Witkoff’s laughably unctuous gush about Putin being a “humanitarian.”
Meanwhile, other Russian officials passed word that Ukraine must make “necessary decisions” or see its situation grow “worse.”
Pretty meager payback, after President Donald Trump first agreed to let Moscow sell millions of barrels of diesel at market prices, end-running sanctions, and then waived fresh sanctions he’d just signed into law.
The Kremlin made one small positive step, releasing American hostage Stephen Hubbard — whom Russian troops seized at age 70 in eastern Ukraine in the second month of the invasion.
Hubbard might visit the White House next week, depending on his condition after years of torture and starvation in Russian prisons.
Trump can take some pride in adding yet another freed hostage to his record total, and maybe his moves will finally pay off in Putin at last agreeing to a cease-fire.
More likely, Vlad will instead try to inflict the worst round of winter suffering yet on Ukraine’s civilians to see if that will break Kyiv; that’s the kind of “humanitarian” he is.