While carefully avoiding an outright rejection of US ceasefire proposals, Moscow is playing for time

Summary

Vladimir Putin conditionally accepted a US-Ukraine ceasefire proposal, demanding Ukraine halt rearmament and that Western aid be paused, while refusing similar constraints on Russia.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy dismissed this stance as “manipulative,” accusing Putin of prolonging the war through impossible preconditions.

Analysts suggest Putin is strategically stalling, leveraging Trump’s eagerness for peace and limited US leverage.

Concerns grow that Trump may align more closely with Putin’s terms, potentially endorsing Russia’s territorial demands and security goals, which would weaken Ukraine and deepen Western divisions.