RUSSIA SAYS “NO MORE MISUNDERSTANDINGS” WITH U.S. ON UKRAINE – WHICH SOUNDS LIKE BAD NEWS FOR KYIV
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov just declared all “misunderstandings” with the United States over Ukraine have been “resolved” following the Putin meeting with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner early December.
The Kremlin called that meeting “constructive.” Lavrov now says it confirmed “mutual understandings” reached between Putin and Trump at their August Alaska summit.
Meaning: they’ve been working on this deal for months, and Moscow likes what it’s hearing.
What Russia’s saying it wants:
• Package of documents for “long-term sustainable peace” with security guarantees
• “Collective security guarantees” that don’t “limit ourselves to Ukraine alone”
• No NATO membership for Ukraine
• Protection for Russian speakers in Ukraine
Here’s what that actually means:
“No misunderstandings” = We’ve agreed Russia keeps occupied territory and Ukraine accepts neutral status.
“Collective security guarantees not limited to Ukraine” = European security architecture gets rewritten to give Russia veto power over its neighbors.
“Protection for Russian speakers” = Russia retains pretext to intervene whenever it claims discrimination.
This means one thing:
The Trump-Putin framework is set. Ukraine’s getting a deal they didn’t negotiate, can’t refuse, and probably won’t like.
Europe’s scrambling because they’re being excluded from talks about their own security. Pope Leo’s objections don’t matter. Zelensky’s amendments are theater.
Lavrov wouldn’t be this confident unless Moscow already knows Trump will deliver. The “misunderstandings” he’s talking about weren’t about goals – they were about tactics and timing.
Now those are resolved too.
What happens next:
Pressure on Ukraine intensifies. Trump threatens aid cutoff. Europe faces choice: accept terms or fund Ukraine alone. Putin gets territorial gains validated, NATO expansion frozen, and new security guarantees that constrain Western military presence near Russian borders.
When Russia says there are “no more misunderstandings” – that sounds like victory lap language.
They’re not announcing progress, it seems. They’re announcing terms have been set, and now it’s just about forcing compliance.
Source: Reuters, CNN