ISW: Putin has little interest in ceasefire, negotiations

Russia would benefit from negotiations with Ukraine and Western countries that include a ceasefire, allowing it to prepare its military for further offensives against Ukraine, the Institute for the Study of War said in its latest update.

"(Russian dictator Vladimir) Putin has shown little interest in such a ceasefire, however, and the Kremlin continues to make demands that are tantamount to full Western surrender, suggesting that Putin remains focused on pursuing military victory," the ISW said.

Putin, along with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, has recently made statements regarding negotiations, likely in an attempt "to create a perception among Western officials that Russia needs to be lured to negotiate," according to the ISW. 

A day before, on Dec. 2, Putin and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held a phone conversation in which Putin claimed that Western support for Ukraine is the reason behind Kyiv's refusal to negotiate with Russia and called on Scholz to reconsider German support for Ukraine. 

Scholz replied that any diplomatic solution to the war in Ukraine must include withdrawing Russian forces from Ukrainian territory, the ISW reported. Earlier on Nov. 30, Scholz vowed to support Ukraine as long as it takes during his remarks at the Berlin Security Conference. 

Other Western leaders have also pledged to continue their support for Ukraine. Speaking alongside U.S. President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and said on Dec. 1 that the West will "never call on Ukrainians for a compromise that will be unacceptable."

The White House also said on Dec. 2 that "Putin has shown absolutely no inclination to be interested in dialogue of any kind."