Ukraine and Russia hold secret talks: Die Zeit found out the details.

Ukraine and Russia are conducting confidential negotiations to reach a compromise and make concessions.

This is reported by the editor of the German publication Die Zeit, Alice Bota.

Within the framework of these negotiations, issues of banning attacks on energy infrastructure, exchanging prisoners, and returning illegally taken Ukrainian children are discussed. Meetings take place in different cities, including Copenhagen, Kyiv, Malta, Davos, and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, and representatives of China participate in them. According to Bota, not all these negotiations were successful.

The Black Sea grain agreement lost its effect after a year, and measures introduced by Qatar to protect infrastructure failed after the start of hostilities in the Kursk region.

Some diplomatic efforts, such as the adoption of the Law on the Reintegration of Donbas and the National Strategy for Marine Space Development, were successful. Many efforts remain out of the public eye.

emphasizes that something like that is more effective

Non-public diplomacy reveals the limits of the possible and discusses issues in a confidential setting, for example "what concessions is Ukraine ready to offer?", "Can the issue of Crimea's status be postponed?" and "what compromises is Russia ready to accept?".

"Imagine what would happen in Ukraine if rumors began to circulate that President Zelensky is ready to give up part of the territories. But when Ukrainian and Russian officials, political advisors, and analysts discuss this in a confidential setting, the other side understands where compromises are possible and where not," writes Alice Bota.

German officials who advocate a peaceful resolution of the conflict are aware of the current processes. However, when they talk about peace, they mean Ukraine's capitulation.

"The question is no longer whether negotiations will happen. The question is when and how it will happen. The main thing is one: Vladimir Putin must be ready for this," added the editor.

The USA has stated "alarming signals" of cooperation between Russia and China.