After the Ukrainian and the US delegations met in Saudi Arabia to discuss peace, Kyiv announced on Tuesday that it was ready to implement a 30-day ceasefire, provided that Russia agreed to the same terms. The announcement by Ukraine has now tilted the pressure to the side of Moscow, which will now have to show its readiness for peace by agreeing to a ceasefire.
A [joint statement](https://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/spilna-zayava-za-pidsumkami-zustrichi-delegacij-ukrayini-ta-96553?fbclid=IwY2xjawI9f3xleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHWTGLoZVpBkKPjWo_KrHpZMjmmLSwWzyxA7D6_uGWP12uEBZ6kYVcIbeog_aem_sdlaXY1nORPXkv-U1G58ew) read Ukraine was "ready to accept the United States proposal to enact an immediate, interim 30-day ceasefire, subject to acceptance and concurrent implementation by the Russian Federation." "We’ll take this offer to the Russians. We hope the Russians will reciprocate," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters.
Though it is yet to react to Kyiv's statement, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that contacts between Moscow and Washington could happen in the coming days. Speculations are that a call between Russia and the US could happen as early as Friday.
While Russian President Vladimir Putin has to prove that he is not a hindrance to US President Donald Trump’s goal of peace, it has earlier adopted a stance against temporary ceasefires, arguing that it will allow Ukraine to regroup and rearm. Instead, Putin wants a "permanent legally binding solution that addresses the root causes of the conflict."
Regional analysts feel that Putin may be forced to cave in and accept some form of peace, though not a ceasefire, especially since it has been advancing in the Kursk region and is on the verge of a complete takeover of the area which Ukraine held since August.
The statement of an influential Russian lawmaker reflects this sentiment. Konstantin Kosachev, chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the Federation Council, took to Telegram to state that any deal would be on Moscow's terms as Russia "was advancing (in Ukraine), and therefore it will be different with Russia. "Any agreements - with all the understanding of the need for compromise - on our terms, not on American. And this is not boasting, but understanding that real agreements are still being written there, at the front. Which they should understand in Washington, too."
However, Trump remains hopeful, considering his "personal relationship" with Putin. "I’ve been saying that Russia has been easier to deal with so far than Ukraine, which is not supposed to be the way it is, but it is,” Trump said. “But we have a full ceasefire from Ukraine, and that’s good… and we hope to get Russia.”
"Hopefully, \[Russian President Vladimir Putin\] can agree to it also and we can get this show on the road,” Trump added.
Trump's stance will also make it more than important for Russia to agree to ceasefire proposals as anything contrary to that will put pressure on Trump to adopt a tougher stance toward Moscow. Putin is aware that rejecting Trump at this point will offset the new-found relations between the US and Russia.