US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth‘s remarks about the war in Ukraine was met with approval in Moscow on Wednesday.
“The statements of the Pentagon chief can be a cold shower for (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelensky,” said the head of the foreign affairs committee in the Russian parliament, Leonid Slutsky, according to the state news agency TASS.
Hegseth had said earlier in Brussels that it was unrealistic to expect Ukraine to return to the pre-2014 borders and also dismissed the country’s post-war accession to NATO.
Hegseth’s assessment of the situation was “quite realistic,” said Slutsky, who is also the leader of the ultranationalist LDPR party.
The priorities of the new US administration allowed for cautious optimism, he said. However, he rejected proposal being floated for a Western peacekeeping force to secure the front line as part of a negotiated peace settlement.
Even if the US renounces participation in this force, this would only lead to a freezing of the conflict and a possible rearmament of Kiev for revenge, said the high-ranking Moscow politician.
The Kremlin is sticking to its maximum demands for a peace agreement. These include the surrender of further territory in addition to the areas already captured, as well as a renunciation of NATO membership and the renewal of Moscow’s influence on politics in Kiev.