U.S. National Security Council communications spokesman John Kirby has come out in favor of delegating to Ukraine everything related to hypothetical future peace negotiations with Russia.
Speaking to CNN, Kirby stressed that any discussion on whether it is time to sit down at the table for talks with Moscow should be left to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and not to Washington.
Kirby took the opportunity to convey the desire of the United States to put an immediate end to the war, although he also recognized that, based on the events on the ground and in the Ukrainian air, «it is difficult to determine whether this war will end by the end of the year».
«Both sides are still in violent fighting in the Donbas, particularly in and around Bajmut (…) The Russians are in defensive positions throughout the south, while the Ukrainians are still trying to apply pressure,» Kirby related.
The U.S. representative stressed, therefore, that there is still «active fighting» on Ukrainian territory, and that the forecasts are that these clashes «will continue for some time in the future», ruling out that the inclement winter weather could bring with it a sort of truce.
