Russian delegation at G20: Expert assesses whether negotiations will resume after meeting with Bessent

Political expert and Ukrainian Armed Forces serviceman Oleksandr Musiienko said that negotiations have intensified, with the United States maintaining contacts with both Russia and Ukraine, and assessed whether this could lead to progress and ultimately to peace, reports Politeka.

He discussed the issue in his blog.

According to the expert, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with his Russian counterpart Anton Siluanov at the G20, where they discussed Trump’s 28-point peace plan. In other words, he notes, there is still no talk of the new initiatives announced by Rubio at the summit in the Philippines, and there will be nothing new or groundbreaking.

“Siluanov’s visit sparked outrage among European finance ministers, which eventually resulted in the Russian minister being left out of the group photo. But the very fact that the meeting took place and that he was present is, of course, outrageous. It clearly demonstrates that the United States is constantly looking for common ground with Russia and seeking some kind of dialogue. But will this lead to results? I have serious doubts. Do they think they can reach an agreement behind Ukraine’s back? That won’t work,” Oleksandr Musiienko commented.

At the same time, he continued, Zelenskyy spoke with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who have still been unable to travel either to Ukraine or Russia, but discussed the situation on the front line and possible dates for a visit to Kyiv.

At the same time, the expert noted that there should be no expectations of progress from negotiations based on the previous peace plan, which Russia has rejected. Budanov, he pointed out, clearly stated in an interview that Russia does not want to discuss freezing the war along the current front line and continues to demand the surrender of Donbas, which Ukraine will not accept.

“I don’t see any grounds for a breakthrough in the negotiations, despite all these contacts. Besides, if Comrade Xi has fallen ill, there is nothing good about that. If he feels that he may soon pass away, they could do something together with Putin. There are many factors right now that do not contribute to peace.

“Could the United States try to pressure us again by slowing down deliveries of Patriot missiles and arms sales, while Russia uses the opportunity to intensify its terrorist strikes? Yes, that could happen, as it did in the autumn of last year. But could this seriously shake the situation? I don’t think so. We’ll see.

“But despite all this diplomatic activity aimed at peace, it is still doubtful that any breakthrough will be achieved for now. Putin’s demands remain unchanged: he wants to seize the entire Donetsk region because, as sources cited by The Economist reportedly said, otherwise he believes they will ‘hang him,’” Oleksandr Musiienko explained.