War

One thousand four hundred fifty-eighth day. WSJ: Zelensky instructed his advisers to prepare for three more years of war, because negotiations failed. Kyiv: this is a “stupid fake”

Since February 24, 2022, Meduza has been broadcasting live about the Russian-Ukrainian war. We publish your letters every day because we are sure that we need to continue talking about the war. Share with us your thoughts about the war. What feelings are you experiencing? How does war affect your life and your attitude towards the world? If you have a story related to the war, tell it . The feedback form is at the end of this article. A review of the previous day can be read here .

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Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, at a closed meeting with his advisers, instructed them to develop a detailed military action plan for the next three years. European political correspondent for The Wall Street Journal Boyan Panchevski spoke about this with reference to sources in a podcast by German journalist Paul Ronzheimer.

According to Panchevsky, the meeting took place on February 13, on the eve of Zelensky’s trip to Munich for an international security conference. During the meeting, the journalist claims, Zelensky “reported that the negotiations had failed, and that now it was necessary to develop a plan for another three years of war.”

As Panchevsky said, before this meeting, the president’s office was working on putting the deal with Russia and the United States, “whatever it may be,” to a referendum, and holding it together with the elections in late spring or early summer.

And suddenly Zelensky makes a 180-degree turn and says: all this is nonsense, we must prepare for a long war […]. It seems that for some reason he is no longer in the mood for negotiations. I don't know what the reason is. This is my source. I know three of his closest advisers - they didn't know it themselves or, if they knew, they didn't tell me why he changed his position.

The journalist suggested that US President Donald Trump made Zelensky his “last offer,” which turned out to be “insufficient” for the Ukrainian president.

Zelensky’s office called the WSJ journalist’s statements “nonsense.” “There was neither such a conversation with advisers and negativity about the negotiations, nor such a task about “war for another three years.” This is just a stupid fake,” said presidential communications adviser Dmitry Litvin. He expressed hope that the negotiating delegations will have time to meet again before the end of February.

The latest round of negotiations in Geneva took place a week after the meeting, which was reported by a WSJ journalist. Following the round, Zelensky, like the negotiators on both sides, made general statements, the tone of which was moderately positive. He expressed hope that a new round will take place in the near future.

In Europe, which is not directly involved in the negotiations, the prospects for a quick end to hostilities are viewed with skepticism.

The day before, Reuters released material stating that the intelligence heads of five European countries (which ones were not specified) believe that a peace agreement is unlikely to be reached before the end of 2026. They connected this with Russia’s position: according to the heads of European intelligence, Moscow does not want to end the war quickly, since its strategic goals, which include the removal of Zelensky, do not change. At the same time, the Russian economy may allow it to continue fighting for a long time.

Today, The Wall Street Journal reported that unnamed senior European officials believe the war will likely last another one to three years.

War in photographs. Mariupol

Mariupol has been under Russian control since the end of May 2022. The city, in which about 450 thousand people lived before the start of the great war, was almost completely destroyed during three months of fighting. The Russian authorities promised to “completely restore” Mariupol within three years, but these plans were not actually implemented. Only a few new residential complexes were built in the city (Vladimir Putin was even brought to one of them in 2023), and most of it still remains destroyed. This is what Mariupol looks like in February 2026.

War through the eyes of Meduza readers. A letter from our reader who thinks his opinion will never be published

How we choose letters

Meduza's readers live in different countries and have different attitudes towards the war. We publish your letters to see this event through your eyes. Our editors try to present all points of view, even if they do not coincide with the editorial position. However, in accordance with the Meduza code, we do not publish messages that contain “hate speech,” justify the murder of civilians, or express direct support for an aggressive war.

Alexey (Donetsk → Moscow) . In the early 2010s they came to us and said: “Ride!” They came to us and said that my grandfather was a traitor, and the Bandera man who killed him was a hero. Those who did not agree with this were declared separatists. Who helped us? My Ukraine? No! Moscow helped. As best she could, clanging her weapon.

But here's the thing... not a Russian, but a Ukrainian missile in 2014 ripped open my house and forced me to flee with a thousand dollars in savings and two children, to whom you cannot explain why they will never see their home, friends, or kindergarten teachers again. We were sheltered, warmed, given a passport and permission to pay taxes. We are getting back on our feet, or rather what is left of them. I have no strength to run anymore.

I believe this letter will never be published, you are all afraid to remember and be reminded of where the roots of this war are. Rooted in Ukraine itself, they are now lining their pockets by hiding children, wives and millions in Europe and the USA. This war benefits only those in power - on both sides. And also overseas. And Russian aggression is a bad, terrible and inhumane consequence! No one is innocent, everyone is disgusting, everyone is covered up. And me, because 13% of my income now rides, flies and kills.

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