The Russians are conducting clandestine negotiations regarding Ukraine, using massive missile strikes on infrastructure as leverage.
In a comment to TSN.ua, former advisor to the Office of the President, Alexey Arestovich, stated,
"There is no secret about it. Look at Turkey's constant attempts to act as a mediator, look at the publications in The New York Times about Burns (CIA Director) meeting with Naryshkin (head of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service). This is an analysis of what is available in open sources. Negotiations are happening one way or another, plus the constant statements of the head of the IAEA. In our press, there are reports about negotiations regarding the fate of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant."
When asked what Russia is trying to negotiate, Arestovich expressed the following opinion:
"The maximum goal is Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk regions, and Crimea as part of Russia. Second, I suspect, is Ukraine's neutrality. Language and church issues are secondary to negotiate from a higher position."
Arestovich does not exclude that, in addition to this, the Russians may also negotiate for limited armed forces.
He also adds that the priority for the Russians is the four regions mentioned earlier: "To prepare and, in 10 years, repeat again from a more advantageous position."
In summary, Arestovich suggests that the Russians might also be negotiating for the removal of sanctions, both personal and state-level.
"They are trying to create a precedent for lifting sanctions out of a grain deal. They are trying to show that they have an effective mechanism that will lead to the forceful removal of sanctions."
