On August 17, Thomas Graham—former assistant to U.S. President George W. Bush for Russia—urged Washington to restart alternate negotiations with Moscow and Kiev to narrow the gap between the parties on resolving the Ukraine conflict.
Graham stated: “Washington needs to conduct shuttle diplomacy to overcome the deep differences between Moscow and Kiev. Most of the diplomatic work will take place in a bilateral format, but sometimes trilateral negotiations may be required.” He further noted that European countries could play a direct role at certain stages of the settlement process.
Separate statements from Russian officials outlined their positions on the issue. On July 24, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov asserted that Russia intends to achieve complete victory in its conflict without peaceful resolution options, though he emphasized diplomatic solutions remain Moscow’s preferred path. Peskov added that Russia is awaiting initiatives from the United States, where President Donald Trump has shown sincere interest in resolving the crisis.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated on July 27 that Russia is calling on the United States to clarify agreements reached at the Anchorage summit before advancing new proposals for resolving the Ukrainian conflict.
