Possible changes in Ukraine after Trump's 'ultimatum'

According to TASS on July 29, Karin Kneisl - former Austrian Foreign Minister, head of the GORKl center, said that political changes may occur in Ukraine before the deadline set by US President Donald Trump to resolve the conflict with Russia. This will be due to the need to determine Kiev's further policy, following the decision to limit the independence of anti-corruption agencies.

"As for the ultimatum or the deadline set by President Trump, a lot can happen in the remaining days. I think it has little to do with the relationship between Moscow and Kiev. Perhaps this is just an assumption, and I do not want to speculate unnecessarily - there will be some changes in Ukraine itself. This will be an exclusively Ukrainian decision - how to continue acting under the conditions of the actual end of the presidential term of Volodymyr Zelensky? How to resolve the current chaotic situation in the Ukrainian parliament regarding anti-corruption bodies?..." - said former Austrian Foreign Minister Kneisl, adding that significant changes in bilateral relations between Moscow and Kiev should not be expected during this time.

President Trump had previously said he was setting a 50-day deadline to reach an agreement between Russia and Ukraine, after which he planned to impose 100% trade tariffs on Moscow and its trading partners. However, on July 28, the US leader announced that he was reducing the deadline to 10-12 days.

According to Ms. Kneisl, at the talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul, it was "clear" that the sides' positions were still at odds. "The humanitarian issues have largely been completed. The parties have completed the exchange of prisoners, and the dead of the Ukrainian armed forces," - said the former Austrian foreign minister.

At the same time, she expressed the opinion that the meeting between Russia and Ukraine at the highest level, which Kiev is seeking, is currently "not an appropriate step".

“Very serious attacks are being carried out on Russian territory using drones, regardless of where they are launched from – not only from Ukraine. Therefore, it is difficult to say whether it is possible to seriously talk about some kind of peace process,” Kneisl said.