That echoes the peace terms that Zelensky and Putin’s representatives discussed in Minsk, Antalya and Istanbul in March and April 2022. Those talks ultimately failed because the Kremlin team refused to budge on key additional demands such as limiting Ukraine’s armed forces and rewriting laws on language rights.

Well, it seems the Russians have gotten their demand of limiting Ukraine’s armed forces either way. So the first one was at least in retrospect, not a bad compromise. As for the second one, what exactly are those details, would you like to elaborate, Mr. Matthews? Is the reason that you aren’t elaborating that the Russians were against the reduction of minority language rights, as admitted even by an Atlantic Council article?

But in many – in fact most –important ways, Zelensky is a victor. Four fifths of Ukraine will emerge independent of Russian dominion

Independent of healthy prime aged males as well

free to rebuild itself as a prosperous European democracy

Yeah cause the “prosperous European democracies” are doing so well themselves, right? How many European leaders have an approval rating above 30%? How many are neoliberal hellhole police states, Owen?

If Ukraine is very lucky, it may find another leader of Zelensky’s strength and calibre.

With luck like this, Ukraine won’t need enemies.