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Los Angeles Times
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
With little progress after phone calls and talks, Ukraine's allies hit Russia with new sanctions
KYIV, Ukraine — Kyiv's European allies slapped new sanctions Tuesday on Moscow, a day after a phone call between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed to produce a breakthrough on ending the three-year-old war in Ukraine. 'We have made clear again and again that we simply expect one thing from Russia now: namely, a ceasefire, unconditional and immediate,' German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said in addressing the sanctions. 'We welcome the fact that Ukraine is still prepared to do this. We note with disappointment that Russia has not yet taken this decisive step, and we will have to react to this.' Diplomatic efforts have seen little progress in halting the fighting, including Monday's phone call between Trump and Putin, and Friday's direct talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul. In the phone call, Putin promised Trump that Russia is 'ready to work with' Ukraine on a 'memorandum' outlining the framework for 'a possible future peace treaty.' 'It appears that Putin has devised a way to offer Trump an interim, tangible outcome from Washington's peace efforts without making any real concessions,' said Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, in a post on X. Russian media struck a triumphal tone in reporting Putin's conversation with Trump. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on his Telegram channel that 'it is obvious that Russia is trying to buy time to continue the war and occupation. We are working with partners to put pressure on the Russians to behave differently.' The new European Union sanctions targeted almost 200 ships from Russia's 'shadow fleet' illicitly transporting oil to skirt Western restrictions. It also imposed asset freezes and travel bans on several officials as well as on a number of Russian companies. Ukrainian officials have said about 500 aging ships of uncertain ownership and safety practices are dodging sanctions and keeping oil revenues flowing to Moscow. The U.K. also targeted the shadow fleet with 100 new sanctions and also aimed at disrupting the supply chains of Russian weapons, officials said. 'Putin's latest strikes once again show his true colors as a warmonger,' British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said. But Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Tuesday: 'Russia never responds to ultimatums.' Trump has threatened to step up sanctions and tariffs on Russia but hasn't acted so far. Ukraine has offered a comprehensive 30-day ceasefire, which Moscow has effectively rejected by imposing far-reaching conditions, and Zelensky proposed a face-to-face meeting with Putin last week but the Russian leader spurned that offer. Trump, who had pledged during his campaign to end the war in one day, said his personal intervention was needed to push peace efforts forward. He held separate phone calls with both Putin and Zelensky, and said the two countries would 'immediately' begin ceasefire negotiations, but there were no details on when or where such talks might take place. 'The status quo has not changed,' Mykhailo Podoliak, a senior advisor to Zelensky, wrote on the social platform X on Tuesday. Russia launched 108 Shahed and decoy drones at Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. One drone dropped explosives on a passenger bus in the Dniprovskyi district of the Kherson region, injuring two people, the local administration said. Putin wants Ukraine to renounce joining NATO, sharply cut its military, and withdraw its forces from the four Ukrainian regions Moscow has seized but doesn't fully control, among other demands to curb the country's sovereignty. After the phone call, the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti published an article headlined, 'Europe's hopes crushed: Trump refuses to go to war with Putin.' In the pro-Kremlin tabloid Moskovsky Komsomolets, columnist Mikhail Rostovsky also portrayed the call as a blow for Ukraine's European allies. 'Kyiv will agree to a serious, fully fledged conversation with Russia only if it has no other options left. Trump is gradually cutting off these other options for Zelensky,' he wrote. 'And this is very, very good.' Since Trump took office, Washington has urged Russia and Ukraine to end Europe's biggest conflict since World War II. After Monday's phone calls, European officials remained skeptical about Russia's intentions. 'Putin has never changed his position,' Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said in Brussels. 'Russia actually doesn't want to end this war.' EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said Russia's failure to negotiate in good faith should trigger the threatened U.S. sanctions. 'We really haven't seen, you know, the pressure on Russia from these talks,' she said. In Kyiv, there was skepticism about Putin's motives. Peace 'is not possible now. Only when [the Russians] run out of resources and army manpower. They are ready to fight, at least for this summer,' Svitlana Kyryliuk, 66, told the Associated Press. Putin will 'stall for time, and that's it,' she said. Volodymyr Lysytsia, a 45-year-old serviceman visiting the capital for rehabilitation, said Putin has made the front lines in eastern Ukraine a wasteland, with 'nothing there, only scorched earth, everything bombed.' Some were unconvinced by Putin's promise to Trump that Russia is 'ready to work with' Ukraine on a 'memorandum' outlining the framework for 'a possible future peace treaty.' The first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow's 2022 invasion ended after less than two hours Friday, and while both sides agreed on a large prisoner swap, they clearly remained far apart on key conditions to end the fighting. Novikov and Konovalov write for the Associated Press. Lorne Cook in Brussels, Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
Chicago Tribune
20-05-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
With little progress after phone calls and talks, Ukraine's allies hit Russia with new sanctions
KYIV, Ukraine — Kyiv's European allies slapped new sanctions Tuesday on Moscow, a day after a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed to produce a breakthrough on ending the 3-year-old war in Ukraine. 'We have made clear again and again that we simply expect one thing from Russia now: namely, a ceasefire, unconditional and immediate,' German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said in announcing the sanctions. 'We welcome the fact that Ukraine is still prepared to do this. We note with disappointment that Russia has not yet taken this decisive step, and we will have to react to this.' Diplomatic efforts have seen little progress in halting the fighting, including Monday's phone call between Trump and Putin, and Friday's direct talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul. In the phone call, Putin promised Trump that Russia is 'ready to work with' Ukraine on a 'memorandum' outlining the framework for 'a possible future peace treaty.' 'It appears that Putin has devised a way to offer Trump an interim, tangible outcome from Washington's peace efforts without making any real concessions,' said Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, in a post on X. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on his Telegram channel that 'it is obvious that Russia is trying to buy time to continue the war and occupation. We are working with partners to put pressure on the Russians to behave differently.' The new European Union sanctions targeted almost 200 ships from Russia's 'shadow fleet' illicitly transporting oil to skirt Western restrictions It also imposed asset freezes and travel bans on several officials as well as on a number of Russian companies. Ukrainian officials have said about 500 aging ships of uncertain ownership and safety practices are dodging sanctions and keeping oil revenues flowing to Moscow. The U.K. also targeted the shadow fleet with 100 new sanctions and also aimed at disrupting the supply chains of Russian weapons, officials said. 'Putin's latest strikes once again show his true colors as a warmonger,' British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said. Trump has threatened to step up sanctions and tariffs on Russia but hasn't acted so far. Ukraine has offered a comprehensive 30-day ceasefire, which Moscow has effectively rejected by imposing far-reaching conditions, and Zelenskyy proposed a face-to-face meeting with Putin last week but the Russian leader spurned that offer. Trump, who had pledged during his campaign to end the war in one day, said his personal intervention was needed to push peace efforts forward. He held separate phone calls with both Putin and Zelenskyy, and said the two countries would 'immediately' begin ceasefire negotiations, but there were no details on when or where such talks might take place. 'The status quo has not changed,' Mykhailo Podoliak, a senior adviser to Zelenskyy, wrote on the social platform X on Tuesday. Russia launched 108 Shahed and decoy drones at Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. One drone dropped explosives on a passenger bus in the Dniprovskyi district of the Kherson region, injuring two people, the local administration said. Putin wants Ukraine to renounce joining NATO, sharply cut its military, and withdraw its forces from the four Ukrainian regions Moscow has seized but doesn't fully control, among other demands to curb the country's sovereignty. Many Russian news outlets struck a triumphal tone in reporting Putin's conversation with Trump. State news agency RIA Novosti published an article headlined, 'Europe's hopes crushed: Trump refuses to go to war with Putin.' In the pro-Kremlin tabloid Moskovsky Komsomolets, columnist Mikhail Rostovsky also portrayed the call as a blow for Ukraine's European allies. 'Kyiv will agree to a serious, fully fledged conversation with Russia only if it has no other options left. Trump is gradually cutting off these other options for Zelenskyy,' he wrote. 'And this is very, very good.' Since Trump took office, Washington has urged Russia and Ukraine to end Europe's biggest conflict since World War II. After Monday's phone calls, European officials remained skeptical about Russia's intentions. 'Putin has never changed his position,' Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said in Brussels. 'Russia actually doesn't want to end this war.' EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said Russia's failure to negotiate in good faith should trigger the threatened U.S. sanctions. 'We really haven't seen, you know, the pressure on Russia from these talks,' she said. In Kyiv, there was skepticism about Putin's motives. Peace 'is not possible now. Only when (the Russians) run out of resources and army manpower. They are ready to fight, at least for this summer,' Svitlana Kyryliuk, 66, told The Associated Press. Putin will 'stall for time, and that's it,' she said. Volodymyr Lysytsia, a 45-year-old serviceman visiting the capital for rehabilitation, said Putin has made the front lines in eastern Ukraine a wasteland, with 'nothing there, only scorched earth, everything bombed.' Some were unconvinced by Putin's promise to Trump that Russia is 'ready to work with' Ukraine on a 'memorandum' outlining the framework for 'a possible future peace treaty.' The first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow's 2022 invasion ended after less than two hours Friday, and while both sides agreed on a large prisoner swap, they clearly remained far apart on key conditions to end the fighting.
Hindustan Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
With little progress after phone calls and talks, Ukraine's allies hit Russia with new sanctions
KYIV, Ukraine — Kyiv's European allies slapped new sanctions Tuesday on Moscow, a day after a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed to produce a breakthrough on ending the 3-year-old war in Ukraine. 'We have made clear again and again that we simply expect one thing from Russia now: namely, a ceasefire, unconditional and immediate,' German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said in announcing the sanctions. 'We welcome the fact that Ukraine is still prepared to do this. We note with disappointment that Russia has not yet taken this decisive step, and we will have to react to this.' Diplomatic efforts have seen little progress in halting the fighting, including Monday's phone call between Trump and Putin, and Friday's direct talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul. In the phone call, Putin promised Trump that Russia is 'ready to work with' Ukraine on a 'memorandum' outlining the framework for 'a possible future peace treaty.' 'It appears that Putin has devised a way to offer Trump an interim, tangible outcome from Washington's peace efforts without making any real concessions,' said Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, in a post on X. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on his Telegram channel that "it is obvious that Russia is trying to buy time to continue the war and occupation. We are working with partners to put pressure on the Russians to behave differently.' The new European Union sanctions targeted almost 200 ships from Russia's 'shadow fleet' illicitly transporting oil to skirt Western restrictions It also imposed asset freezes and travel bans on several officials as well as on a number of Russian companies. Ukrainian officials have said about 500 aging ships of uncertain ownership and safety practices are dodging sanctions and keeping oil revenues flowing to Moscow. The U.K. also targeted the shadow fleet with 100 new sanctions and also aimed at disrupting the supply chains of Russian weapons, officials said. 'Putin's latest strikes once again show his true colors as a warmonger,' British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said. Trump has threatened to step up sanctions and tariffs on Russia but hasn't acted so far. Ukraine has offered a comprehensive 30-day ceasefire, which Moscow has effectively rejected by imposing far-reaching conditions, and Zelenskyy proposed a face-to-face meeting with Putin last week but the Russian leader spurned that offer. Trump, who had pledged during his campaign to end the war in one day, said his personal intervention was needed to push peace efforts forward. He held separate phone calls with both Putin and Zelenskyy, and said the two countries would 'immediately' begin ceasefire negotiations, but there were no details on when or where such talks might take place. 'The status quo has not changed,' Mykhailo Podoliak, a senior adviser to Zelenskyy, wrote on the social platform X on Tuesday. Russia launched 108 Shahed and decoy drones at Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. One drone dropped explosives on a passenger bus in the Dniprovskyi district of the Kherson region, injuring two people, the local administration said. Putin wants Ukraine to renounce joining NATO, sharply cut its military, and withdraw its forces from the four Ukrainian regions Moscow has seized but doesn't fully control, among other demands to curb the country's sovereignty. Many Russian news outlets struck a triumphal tone in reporting Putin's conversation with Trump. State news agency RIA Novosti published an article headlined, 'Europe's hopes crushed: Trump refuses to go to war with Putin." In the pro-Kremlin tabloid Moskovsky Komsomolets, columnist Mikhail Rostovsky also portrayed the call as a blow for Ukraine's European allies. 'Kyiv will agree to a serious, fully fledged conversation with Russia only if it has no other options left. Trump is gradually cutting off these other options for Zelenskyy,' he wrote. 'And this is very, very good.' Since Trump took office, Washington has urged Russia and Ukraine to end Europe's biggest conflict since World War II. After Monday's phone calls, European officials remained skeptical about Russia's intentions. 'Putin has never changed his position,' Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said in Brussels. 'Russia actually doesn't want to end this war.' EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said Russia's failure to negotiate in good faith should trigger the threatened U.S. sanctions. 'We really haven't seen, you know, the pressure on Russia from these talks,' she said. In Kyiv, there was skepticism about Putin's motives. Peace 'is not possible now. Only when run out of resources and army manpower. They are ready to fight, at least for this summer,' Svitlana Kyryliuk, 66, told The Associated Press. Putin will 'stall for time, and that's it,' she said. Volodymyr Lysytsia, a 45-year-old serviceman visiting the capital for rehabilitation, said Putin has made the front lines in eastern Ukraine a wasteland, with 'nothing there, only scorched earth, everything bombed.' Some were unconvinced by Putin's promise to Trump that Russia is 'ready to work with' Ukraine on a 'memorandum' outlining the framework for 'a possible future peace treaty.' The first direct Russia-Ukraine peace talks since the early weeks of Moscow's 2022 invasion ended after less than two hours Friday, and while both sides agreed on a large prisoner swap, they clearly remained far apart on key conditions to end the fighting. Lorne Cook in Brussels, Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed. Follow 's coverage of the war in Ukraine at /hub/russia-ukraine
The Sun
15-05-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Russian nationalists press Putin to fight on in Ukraine
AS Russian President Vladimir Putin explores a potential peace settlement to end the war in Ukraine, hawkish anti-Western nationalists at home are waging a campaign to keep the conflict going. 'We surrender our weapons, we surrender our country!', Pavel Gubarev, a pro-Moscow activist in part of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region controlled by Moscow, posted on Sunday, raging against the prospect of the conflict being 'frozen' along current lines. To someone brought up in the West, it might look at first sight as if Putin is under pressure. However, the so-called 'Z-patriots' – named after a symbol Russian forces in Ukraine paint on their vehicles - must conform to certain rules and do not ultimately pose a threat to Putin, three people close to the Kremlin said. They will be expected to toe the line if and when the moment comes to make peace, the people said. At the same time, Putin and his intelligence agencies do need to manage Russia's hardcore nationalists to ensure they don't disrupt his goals, the three people said. Analysts say that by arguing for the war to continue, as U.S. President Donald Trump and some Western European leaders push for a deal, the Z-patriots can sometimes go too far for the Kremlin's liking by riling up the public and creating expectations of a more ambitious battlefield campaign. 'They are not all under full control,' said Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center who has studied the Kremlin for years. Stanovaya, whom the Russian authorities last year designated a 'foreign agent,' noted that some Z-patriots have called on the Russian army to take the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Odesa and even attack Poland. Such targets go well beyond what Putin, who has claimed four Ukrainian regions as part of Russia - in addition to Crimea - has stated as Russia's war aims. 'Their whipping up of people and pushing society to support a bigger military campaign is a hindrance and work goes on to get them to tone down what they are saying or put a sock in it because they stir up society when Putin needs to hold talks,' said Stanovaya. The Kremlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story. Some of the Z-patriots - war bloggers or war correspondents - have half a million followers or more on the Telegram social media platform and are widely read inside Russia, including among the elite, abroad, and in Ukraine. But they must tread carefully. Nationalists who have crossed the Kremlin in the past ran into problems – notably rebellious Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and outspoken ultra-nationalist Igor Girkin. Prigozhin died in a plane crash and Girkin was jailed. The Kremlin has rejected as an 'absolute lie' the suggestion that Putin had Prigozhin killed in revenge for his mutiny. It says it does not interfere in court cases, something critics contest. Analysts say the Z-patriots have been useful to the Kremlin, helping it build and maintain broad public support for the war for the last three years. But Z-patriots who make too much of a fuss about any eventual peace deal risk being purged, said the three sources, who, like others in this story, spoke on condition of anonymity given the matter's sensitivity. One of the sources said the ultra-nationalists would quickly change their rhetoric once the Kremlin settles on a peace plan. 'It will be like a light switch is being flicked,' the source said. 'WAR WILL CONTINUE' After Putin called for direct peace talks in Istanbul with Ukraine at a Kremlin news conference on Sunday, some ultra-nationalists were quick to voice their concerns. A Russian negotiating team was in Turkey on Thursday for the talks, though it was unclear if they would happen, with Putin himself apparently not attending. 'Our war will continue until the complete liberation of Novorossiya and Malorossiya,' Konstantin Malofeyev, a nationalist tycoon who is married to a senior government official reporting directly to Putin, wrote in his blog on Monday, using terms that hark back to the Russian Empire and describe a swath of modern-day Ukraine once ruled by the Tsars. Malofeyev did not respond to a request for an interview. Meanwhile Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who is currently deputy chairman of the Security Council and who once styled himself as a liberal pro-Western moderniser, took to X on Saturday to say a truce would offer the Ukrainian army 'respite'. Medvedev has garnered a reputation for making often extreme and undiplomatic remarks, but his utterances do reflect a strand of thinking among senior Kremlin figures, five diplomats consulted by Reuters said. As a former Kremlin chief, analysts and one of the sources said Medvedev - who remains close to Putin - enjoyed particular licence to speak out. One of the sources said that bellicose pronouncements by nationalists like Malofeyev – though sincere and not scripted – are one way of tracking whether the Kremlin is really close to peace in Ukraine or not. If and when the war ends or is close to ending and the situation changes, such people will sense that the wind has changed, the source said. Those that don't adjust their behaviour could find themselves in jail, said another of the sources. The authorities have made two rules very obvious: don't criticise Putin personally or the army's top brass. Under a law passed soon after tens of thousands of Russian troops swept into Ukraine in 2022, 'discrediting' the military was made punishable by up to 15 years in jail. After accusing Putin and the army top brass of failure in Ukraine, Girkin, a former FSB officer and battlefield commander wanted for a war crime in the West, was convicted of inciting extremism in 2024 and handed a four-year jail term. Nonetheless, he wrote on social media from prison on Monday that 'only a fool or a saboteur who secretly assists the enemy in the information sphere could talk about the imminent end of the war and any compromise.' Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner mercenary group, took his men on an abortive and bloody march on Moscow in June 23 to try to oust the then defence minister and strayed into personal criticism of Putin. He was killed in a plane crash with his top lieutenants two months to the day after his mutiny. Putin later intimated that the plane had been blown up with hand grenades while those on board were high on cocaine and alcohol. 'THE PARTY OF WAR' Many Russians associate the Z-Patriots label with war bloggers and correspondents, a group that rose to prominence after the start of the conflict. Outspoken in the war's early stages, the Kremlin and the Defence Ministry later invited many of them to briefings to try to co-opt them. Some now re-publish Defence Ministry press releases along with their own analysis; others remain more outspoken. But the so-called 'party of war' includes a wider group of voices too, including deputies of the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, and so-called 'political technologists' experts who shape public opinion on primetime state TV chat shows dedicated to the war, providing a useful service to the Kremlin by repeating and amplifying its preferred storyline. War hawks include figures linked to the Defence Ministry, intelligence agencies, law enforcement agencies and individuals who have been or remain close to Putin. Those allowed to appear on the TV chat shows about the war regularly bandy about wild threats against the West, such as using nuclear weapons against Britain or invading the Baltic countries. A fourth source inside Russia said the desire to prolong the war in some circles was driven by a domestic pressure inside the system on Putin to definitively settle what they see as Russia's Ukraine problem. Carnegie's Stanovaya, who, based on polling, estimated the Z-patriots' views are shared by 10-15% of Russians, said Putin's own firmly-held ideas meant the nationalists were not a serious influence on him. 'Without radical external changes, Putin is committed to ending the war on his own terms,' she said referring to his stated territorial and security goals in Ukraine. 'He's ready to wage war for years or to achieve his aims in a different way.'
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russian nationalists press Putin to fight on in Ukraine
By Andrew Osborn (Reuters) -As Russian President Vladimir Putin explores a potential peace settlement to end the war in Ukraine, hawkish anti-Western nationalists at home are waging a campaign to keep the conflict going. 'We surrender our weapons, we surrender our country!", Pavel Gubarev, a pro-Moscow activist in part of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region controlled by Moscow, posted on Sunday, raging against the prospect of the conflict being 'frozen' along current lines. To someone brought up in the West, it might look at first sight as if Putin is under pressure. However, the so-called 'Z-patriots' – named after a symbol Russian forces in Ukraine paint on their vehicles - must conform to certain rules and do not ultimately pose a threat to Putin, three people close to the Kremlin said. They will be expected to toe the line if and when the moment comes to make peace, the people said. At the same time, Putin and his intelligence agencies do need to manage Russia's hardcore nationalists to ensure they don't disrupt his goals, the three people said. Analysts say that by arguing for the war to continue, as U.S. President Donald Trump and some Western European leaders push for a deal, the Z-patriots can sometimes go too far for the Kremlin's liking by riling up the public and creating expectations of a more ambitious battlefield campaign. "They are not all under full control," said Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center who has studied the Kremlin for years. Stanovaya, whom the Russian authorities last year designated a "foreign agent," noted that some Z-patriots have called on the Russian army to take the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Odesa and even attack Poland. Such targets go well beyond what Putin, who has claimed four Ukrainian regions as part of Russia - in addition to Crimea - has stated as Russia's war aims. "Their whipping up of people and pushing society to support a bigger military campaign is a hindrance and work goes on to get them to tone down what they are saying or put a sock in it because they stir up society when Putin needs to hold talks," said Stanovaya. The Kremlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story. Some of the Z-patriots - war bloggers or war correspondents - have half a million followers or more on the Telegram social media platform and are widely read inside Russia, including among the elite, abroad, and in Ukraine. But they must tread carefully. Nationalists who have crossed the Kremlin in the past ran into problems – notably rebellious Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and outspoken ultra-nationalist Igor Girkin. Prigozhin died in a plane crash and Girkin was jailed. The Kremlin has rejected as an "absolute lie" the suggestion that Putin had Prigozhin killed in revenge for his mutiny. It says it does not interfere in court cases, something critics contest. Analysts say the Z-patriots have been useful to the Kremlin, helping it build and maintain broad public support for the war for the last three years. But Z-patriots who make too much of a fuss about any eventual peace deal risk being purged, said the three sources, who, like others in this story, spoke on condition of anonymity given the matter's sensitivity. One of the sources said the ultra-nationalists would quickly change their rhetoric once the Kremlin settles on a peace plan. 'It will be like a light switch is being flicked,' the source said. 'WAR WILL CONTINUE' After Putin called for direct peace talks in Istanbul with Ukraine at a Kremlin news conference on Sunday, some ultra-nationalists were quick to voice their concerns. A Russian negotiating team was in Turkey on Thursday for the talks, though it was unclear if they would happen, with Putin himself apparently not attending. 'Our war will continue until the complete liberation of Novorossiya and Malorossiya,' Konstantin Malofeyev, a nationalist tycoon who is married to a senior government official reporting directly to Putin, wrote in his blog on Monday, using terms that hark back to the Russian Empire and describe a swath of modern-day Ukraine once ruled by the Tsars. Malofeyev did not respond to a request for an interview. Meanwhile Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who is currently deputy chairman of the Security Council and who once styled himself as a liberal pro-Western moderniser, took to X on Saturday to say a truce would offer the Ukrainian army 'respite'. Medvedev has garnered a reputation for making often extreme and undiplomatic remarks, but his utterances do reflect a strand of thinking among senior Kremlin figures, five diplomats consulted by Reuters said. As a former Kremlin chief, analysts and one of the sources said Medvedev - who remains close to Putin - enjoyed particular licence to speak out. One of the sources said that bellicose pronouncements by nationalists like Malofeyev – though sincere and not scripted – are one way of tracking whether the Kremlin is really close to peace in Ukraine or not. If and when the war ends or is close to ending and the situation changes, such people will sense that the wind has changed, the source said. Those that don't adjust their behaviour could find themselves in jail, said another of the sources. The authorities have made two rules very obvious: don't criticise Putin personally or the army's top brass. Under a law passed soon after tens of thousands of Russian troops swept into Ukraine in 2022, 'discrediting' the military was made punishable by up to 15 years in jail. After accusing Putin and the army top brass of failure in Ukraine, Girkin, a former FSB officer and battlefield commander wanted for a war crime in the West, was convicted of inciting extremism in 2024 and handed a four-year jail term. Nonetheless, he wrote on social media from prison on Monday that 'only a fool or a saboteur who secretly assists the enemy in the information sphere could talk about the imminent end of the war and any compromise.' Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner mercenary group, took his men on an abortive and bloody march on Moscow in June 23 to try to oust the then defence minister and strayed into personal criticism of Putin. He was killed in a plane crash with his top lieutenants two months to the day after his mutiny. Putin later intimated that the plane had been blown up with hand grenades while those on board were high on cocaine and alcohol. 'THE PARTY OF WAR' Many Russians associate the Z-Patriots label with war bloggers and correspondents, a group that rose to prominence after the start of the conflict. Outspoken in the war's early stages, the Kremlin and the Defence Ministry later invited many of them to briefings to try to co-opt them. Some now re-publish Defence Ministry press releases along with their own analysis; others remain more outspoken. But the so-called 'party of war' includes a wider group of voices too, including deputies of the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, and so-called 'political technologists' experts who shape public opinion on primetime state TV chat shows dedicated to the war, providing a useful service to the Kremlin by repeating and amplifying its preferred storyline. War hawks include figures linked to the Defence Ministry, intelligence agencies, law enforcement agencies and individuals who have been or remain close to Putin. Those allowed to appear on the TV chat shows about the war regularly bandy about wild threats against the West, such as using nuclear weapons against Britain or invading the Baltic countries. A fourth source inside Russia said the desire to prolong the war in some circles was driven by a domestic pressure inside the system on Putin to definitively settle what they see as Russia's Ukraine problem. Carnegie's Stanovaya, who, based on polling, estimated the Z-patriots' views are shared by 10-15% of Russians, said Putin's own firmly-held ideas meant the nationalists were not a serious influence on him. "Without radical external changes, Putin is committed to ending the war on his own terms," she said referring to his stated territorial and security goals in Ukraine. "He's ready to wage war for years or to achieve his aims in a different way."
