Kremlin seeks to pressure Trump into dropping deadline for peace deal – ISW
According to Ukrinform, this assessment comes from a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
ISW analysts highlighted a statement by Russian Security Council Deputy Chairperson Dmitry Medvedev that Trump cannot dictate the timing of peace negotiations and that negotiations will end when Russia has achieved all of its "war objectives."
The report also cites Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who stated that Russia would continue its war against Ukraine in order "to protect Russia's interests," despite Trump's July 28 announcement of the new 10- or 12-day deadline.
Peskov claimed that there is currently a slowdown in the process to normalize Russian-American relations, that the Kremlin remains interested in normalization, and that progress will require "impulses" from both sides. Peskov also noted that the current state of Russian-American relations is hindering the process of negotiating an extension of the New START Treaty (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty).
ISW experts pointed out that the Kremlin previously dangled the prospect of incentives that were unrelated to the war in Ukraine, such as bilateral arms control talks and economic projects, in order to extract concessions from the United States about the war in Ukraine.
According to the report, Peskov's statements about the deterioration of Russian-American relations and New START are likely part of efforts to compel Trump to renounce his deadline for the sake of normalizing bilateral relations and pursuing increased cooperation.
"ISW continues to assess that the Kremlin is uninterested in negotiations to end the war and is instead trying to protract the war in Ukraine in order to make additional gains on the battlefield," the analysts concluded.
On July 14, Trump issued a 50-day ultimatum to Russia aimed at pushing it toward peace. On July 28, he announced that he would shorten the ultimatum to 10-12 days. He also stated that he no longer had any interest in meeting or speaking with Putin, though at the same time, he said Russia must agree to a deal to end the war in Ukraine.
On July 29, Trump reiterated that the ultimatum would now be limited to ten days from that date.
