US wants Ukraine and Russia to make concessions

US Special Presidential Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg said over the weekend that both Ukraine and Russia should "give a little bit of ground" to reach a solution to the nearly three-year conflict.

According to AFP, Mr. Kellogg said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has shown signs of softening his stance on the territory and suggested that the Russian leader do the same. The US official proposed that Ukraine hold elections by the end of the year if the parties reach a ceasefire agreement in the coming months.

Commenting on this, President Zelensky’s communications adviser Dmytro Lytvyn said that a plan that only includes a ceasefire and elections is not enough and will fail. Emphasizing that it is impossible to judge the entire US position from a few quotes, Mr. Lytvyn stated that Ukraine wants a more specific and in-depth plan to end the conflict and bring lasting peace.

What did Mr. Trump reveal about how to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict?

After nearly three years of fighting, Russian troops are advancing in eastern Ukraine while Kyiv forces control part of the territory in the Kursk province in western Russia. Ukrainian media reported that Sergei Yefremov, deputy governor of Russia's Primorsky region, who commanded a volunteer military unit, was killed by a landmine in Kursk on February 2. On the Ukrainian side, General Viktor Nazarov, a former adviser to former army commander Valery Zaluzhny, said yesterday (February 3) that the country could reduce the conscription age from 25 to 21 to address the problem of military shortages. In April 2024, Ukraine reduced the conscription age from 27 to 25 while its partners called for considering lowering it to 18. Russia and Ukraine have not commented on the two reports.