January 2023 or 2022?
This was in 2023, right before they decided to send tanks in. This indicates two things, Russia is feeling confident given they rejected the proposal, and US is starting to panic. This proposal was a complete reversal on their previous policy and what they say publicly. I imagine it’s also related to the three reports released by RAND, CSIS, and IMF stating that a long war is not in US interest, that US military industrial complex is struggling now, and that the sanctions failed to achieve their desired effect.
Well that’s curious. Hopefully our government isn’t overestimating the situation
Indeed, but all the indications so far is that Russia is being pretty methodical overall.
Shame on Russia for not taking the deal to be honest.
Ukraine rejected the deal as well, so it’s kind of a moot point. That said, it makes no sense for Russia to accept the deal now because the war is with NATO at this point. The openly stated goal for NATO is to weaken Russia and to try take it apart at some point. Russia has to prevent this from happening and that means decisively defeating NATO in Ukraine.
The US word cannot be trusted, even in writing and signed.
Russia doesn’t want to make a Minsk mistake again.
The deal leaves weapons in Galicia, the fascists who started this are Galicians. Some of the weapons being given could reach Russia, the Russians aren’t going to allow that, not now after the West broke every agreement made so far.
Exactly. As Xi said to Scholz, political trust, once broken, is very hard to regain. Merkel’s open admission that Minsk II was a ploy to buy the Ukrainians time basically obviated the chance of any rapprochement over Ukraine. If somebody in Berlin or Washington had reprimanded her, or issued an official denial – "this woman doesn’t represent current German or NATO leadership, and her version of events is not accurate " – the situation could maybe have been salvaged. But people either echoed her, or said nothing, and Russia now knows the west is absolutely not to be trusted.