Follow us on social

Diplomacy Watch

Diplomacy Watch: Putin and Zelenskyy say each other is the holdout

Serious talks in peril as neither side sees the other as legitimate

Reporting | QiOSK

Russian and Ukrainian leaders appear to be goading one another as to who is and who isn’t ready to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov charged late last week that Ukraine is not ready for serious negotiations. “Despite the increasingly loud talk about the need for peace talks,” he said, “there are objectively no practical actions indicating that Kyiv and the West are really ready for them.”

The Russian foreign minister added, “There is a (Ukrainian) legal ban on negotiations, and the issue of the legitimacy of the Ukrainian authorities is not being resolved,” said Lavrov — referring to the fact that Zelenskyy did not hold an election in May of 2024 and has been in power under martial law.

Meanwhile, Russian President Putin expressed concern that Zelenskyy is not legally qualified to sign a long-term peace agreement. “In terms of signing documents, everything has to be done in a way that legal experts confirm the legitimacy of those who are authorized by the Ukrainian state to sign these agreements," he said.

For his part, Zelenskyy shot back. “Today, Putin once again confirmed that he is afraid of negotiations, afraid of strong leaders, and does everything possible to prolong the war,” he posted on X.

Despite this rhetoric, support for a negotiated peace is high amongst Ukraine’s public, as many are war-weary. Additionally, some experts are optimistic. “There is much discussion on how to separate Russian and Ukrainian political posturing from their actual negotiating positions, but those distinctions will naturally emerge over the course of peace talks,” says the Quincy Institute’s Mark Episkopos. “The main task at hand is to incentivize both sides to negotiate in good faith.”

In other Ukraine war news this week:

President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a pause on most U.S. foreign aid last week, and now Ukrainians are beginning to feel the effects. The Guardian reports that most U.S. Aid programs in Ukraine have abruptly stopped.

The United States has provided Ukraine with $37 billion in humanitarian and development aid since the start of Russia’s invasion in 2022, mainly through the Agency for International Development (USAID).

“They’re going to feel the effect of this next week,” said Hope for Ukraine founder Yuriy Boyechko. Many organizations are unsure what to do in the long term but will temporarily use local and redirected funds to fill some funding holes.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy indicated that the United States would continue providing military aid, but it is unclear how long the pause on other forms of assistance will last.

Reuters reports that Ukrainian officials uncovered “mass fraud” totaling around $40 million in its weapons procurement system. A contract for mortar shells had been reached with Lviv Arsenal, but the shells never arrived, and the money was moved to foreign accounts. “According to the investigation, former and current high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Defence and heads of affiliated companies are involved in the embezzlement,” said Ukrainian security officials.

At least 20 American mercenaries are MIA in Russia, hitting a 6-month spike, according to CNN. Additionally, the remains of at least 5 Americans are currently stuck in Europe as their extradition is being negotiated with European governments. It is unknown how many Americans have died in Ukraine so far.


Top Photo Credit: Diplomacy Watch

Diplomacy Watch

Reporting | QiOSK
Trump Milei
Top image credit: U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Argentina's President Javier Milei at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 14, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Trump bet $40B on Milei, but what do Americans get out of it?

Latin America

It has been a busy week for U.S. policy towards Argentina.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Wednesday that the U.S. would be doubling the assistance it is marshaling for Argentina from $20 billion to $40 billion. The increase comes ahead of legislative elections on October 26 that will elect half the lower house and one-third of the upper house, and represents an increasingly strenuous effort in Washington to bolster Argentine President Javier Milei financially and politically.

keep readingShow less
Von Der Leyen Zelensky
Top image credit: paparazzza / Shutterstock.com

Blame game erupts in Europe as Ukraine strategy falters

Europe

Angela Merkel, the eternal pragmatist, has chosen her moment. In a recent interview to Hungarian media, the former German chancellor pointed a finger at Baltic and Polish leaders for their alleged role in “undermining” a potential EU-Russia dialogue before the war.

Whatever one thinks of her legacy, Merkel has an unmatched sense of political timing. Her statement is not a historical aside; it is the opening salvo in Europe’s looming blame game for the impending defeat in Ukraine.

Her comments land at the precise moment the foundational assumptions of Europe’s Ukraine policy are collapsing. On the battlefield, Russian forces are now grinding out slow, but steady gains. In the United States, Donald Trump keeps insisting that this is “Biden’s war,” not his, and that it should end.

keep readingShow less
Congo DRC M23
Top photo credit: Demonstration raising awareness of the conflict and humanitarian crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in Brussels in the Brussels Capital province of Belgium on October 8, 2025. (Hans Lucas/Reuters)

No, Trump did not 'end' the war in the Congo. It's as bloody as ever.

Africa

Earlier this week, Donald Trump made the bold claim that he’s responsible for ending eight wars since taking office this past January — in other words, nearly one war each month of his presidency.

Among the wars on his list is the decades-long conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, which has mired central Africa since the days of the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s in a quagmire conflict involving over one hundred armed groups.

keep readingShow less

LATEST

QIOSK

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.