Follow us on social

Shutterstock_2129046806-scaled

Diplomacy Watch: How much is the US focused on it?

Your new weekly round-up of diplomatic efforts — what's happening, what's not — to end Russia's war in Ukraine.

Analysis | Europe

Every day since Russia’s invasion, mainstream headlines have focused on each new arms shipment to Ukraine and the tactical details surrounding the daily fighting and suffering on the ground. This constant flow of information is valuable for tracking troop movements, recording battlefield gains and losses, and documenting any potential war crimes — in essence, helping us write the first draft of history.

Diplomatic efforts, in so much that they are happening, have largely taken a back seat to these splashy headlines. But it’s important to remember that diplomacy is also part of history, and more importantly, the key to ending this war. And in many ways, the U.S. and its partners have an outsized role to play in it.

Indeed, New York Times chief diplomatic correspondent Steven Erlanger noted just last week that a return to serious diplomacy is "more dependent on decisions made in Washington and Paris and Poland because of the support these countries are providing in weapons and diplomatically." Calling the U.S. role "crucial," Erlanger added that "[t]here is no question that it’s American leadership on the anti-Russia coalition."

So in our new weekly “Diplomacy Watch” feature, we would like to track and highlight the diplomatic news as it happens. We hope this will serve as a measure of what the United States and the West are actually doing to bring Russia and Ukraine to a ceasefire and an eventual settlement, and an end to economic suffering and violence on the ground. 

With that in mind, here is our first round-up:

— On Saturday, according to the South China Morning Post, Ukraine’s chief negotiator said Ukraine could return to the negotiating table by the end of August, but not before a series of counter-attacks aimed at regaining territory lost to Russia. "The country will be in a better position to negotiate at that time, Kyiv’s chief negotiator, David Arakhamia, said in an interview with US broadcaster Voice of America, without giving details of the strategy."

— French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters in Romania last Wednesday that the war can only end with a diplomatic solution, with the caveat that he hopes Ukraine will have the strongest hand at the negotiating table, according to The Wall Street Journal. “At some point, when we will have helped Ukraine as much as possible to resist, when I hope Ukraine will have won and fighting will have stopped, we will have to negotiate,” Macron said.

Reutersreported Tuesday that Turkey will host talks with Ukraine, Russia and the United Nations “in the coming weeks” with the goal of creating a safe corridor for exporting Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea.

"The sources said the plan envisaged creating three corridors from Ukraine's Black Sea port city of Odesa under Kyiv's supervision, and that both Ukrainian and Russian food products would be shipped from there. They said 30-35 million tonnes of grain could be shipped from there in the next six to eight months."

— Secretary of State Antony Blinken will attend talks in Berlin today (June 24) on food insecurity, a topic that will also be on the docket at this weekend's G7 conference. According to a State Department press release, other summit attendees will include G7 members like the UK, the EU and Japan as well as prominent non-members like India, South Africa, Ukraine and Argentina. Meanwhile, the U.S. announced an agriculture partnership with Ukraine that will include technical assistance and aid aimed at rebuilding Kyiv’s farming capacity after the war.

— In this week's State Department press briefing, spokesperson Ned Price had little to say about talks but assured reporters that lines of communication remain open with Moscow. "We have engaged with the Russian Federation consistently in recent months to try to get to a better place in terms of our embassy staffing in Moscow to seek to preserve that diplomatic channel that our embassies afford," Price said.

Thanks to our readers and supporters, Responsible Statecraft has had a tremendous year. A complete website overhaul made possible in part by generous contributions to RS, along with amazing writing by staff and outside contributors, has helped to increase our monthly page views by 133%! In continuing to provide independent and sharp analysis on the major conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as the tumult of Washington politics, RS has become a go-to for readers looking for alternatives and change in the foreign policy conversation. 

 

We hope you will consider a tax-exempt donation to RS for your end-of-the-year giving, as we plan for new ways to expand our coverage and reach in 2025. Please enjoy your holidays, and here is to a dynamic year ahead!

(Shutterstock/ kovop58)
Analysis | Europe
Russia Putin
Russia's President Vladimir Putin speaks during a session of the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, Russia October 19, 2017. REUTERS/Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool

Peace denied? Russian budget jacks up wartime economy

Europe

On December 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the budget law for 2025-2027. The Duma had earlier approved the law on November 21, and the Federation Council rubber stamped it on November 27.

The main takeaway from the budget is that Russia is planning for the long haul in its war with NATO-backed Ukraine and makes clear that Russia intends to double down on defense spending no matter what the cost. While the increased budget does not shed light on expectations for a speedy resolution to the war, it is indicative that Moscow continues to prepare for conflict with both Ukraine and NATO.

keep readingShow less
Committee Hearing: The Imperative to Strengthen America's Defense Industrial Base and Workforce
Top Image Credit: Senate Committee Hearing: The Imperative to Strengthen America's Defense Industrial Base and Workforce (YouTube/Screenshot)

Industry: War with China may be imminent, but we're not ready

Military Industrial Complex

Military industry mainstays and lawmakers alike are warning of imminent conflict with China in an effort to push support for controversial deep tech, especially controversial autonomous and AI-backed systems.

The conversation, which presupposed a war with Beijing sometime in the near future, took place Wednesday on Capitol Hill at a hearing of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) entitled, “The Imperative to Strengthen America's Defense Industrial Base and Workforce.”

keep readingShow less
Diplomacy Watch: Still tap dancing around NATO for Kyiv

Diplomacy Watch: Still tap dancing around NATO for Kyiv

QiOSK

Kyiv and Moscow both hinted this week at their shifting expectations and preparations for a potentially approaching conclusion to the Ukraine War, amid a frantic push from the Biden administration to “put Ukraine in the strongest possible position” ahead of President-elect Trump’s inauguration in January.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan reiterated this goal as part of a Dec. 2 White House announcement of $725 million in additional security assistance for Ukraine, which will include substantial artillery, rockets, drones, and land mines and will be delivered “rapidly” to Ukraine’s front lines. The Kremlin said on Tuesday that the new package shows that the Biden administration aims to “throw oil on the fire” of the war before exiting office.

keep readingShow less

Election 2024

Latest

Newsletter

Subscribe now to our weekly round-up and don't miss a beat with your favorite RS contributors and reporters, as well as staff analysis, opinion, and news promoting a positive, non-partisan vision of U.S. foreign policy.