An ultimatum to Putin?

[kentuck]

Agree to negotiate a settlement with Ukraine or else.

He cannot hold on to power for very long under the present circumstances. There needs to be an immediate ceasefire and a withdrawal of forces if he wants to remain leader of Russia? Dictators cannot maintain any legitimacy under the circumstances Putin now faces.

If he wants his wealth unfrozen and if he wants business to return to Russia, then he must act very soon.

His situation will continue to deteriorate if he does not come to some sort of agreement soon? Tanks rolling thru the country of Ukraine will guarantee him nothing but death and misfortune. The ball is in his court.

[MLAA]

1. What kind of settlement can there be except leave Ukraine immediately and pay reparations?

[kentuck]

4. If Ukraine is permitted into the EU...

...then they might postpone any talk of joining NATO for a few years? It will probably take a while to rebuild their country after this invasion. Russia might agree to that?

Also, Russia must agree to stop interfering in the democracies around the world, especially the one in the United States.

Also, unfreezing Putin's personal wealth is probably very important to him? Even moreso than whether or not Russia survives. The people of Russia are known for their "revolutions"...

[MLAA]

13. Agree on NATO/countries removing sanctions might be a motivator.

I was just thinking there is nothing that Ukraine can /should give up themselves. Fingers crossed.

[lagomorph777]

15. Why are we already offering concessions?

How about "Give up and we won't kill you. We'll let you live out your days in a nice suite with bars."

[Irish_Dem]

16. Postponing NATO is what got them into this mess?

I think the pre-war offers are off the table now.
They should be off the table.

Once Hitler started bombing London, there were no more appeasement offers ever again.

[NCDem47]

2. Hear me out on this...

What if the previous two regions that were Russian occupied are officially ceded to Russia. Then, Ukarine is admitted to EU and NATO and a frickin' DMZ with walls, guards and the whole nine yards are built along those borders and with Russia? I'm not sure he can count at any point on overtaking and permnanetly occupying Ukarine in whole. I hate that ANYTHING has to be turned over to him though.

[lagomorph777]

3. Nope. Take those back, along with a nice chunk of Russia as a buffer zone.

Also, we'll take the oil and gas fields on Siberia, thank you very much.

[kentuck]

6. If this were a chess game...

It would be darn close to checkmate.

[Irish_Dem]

10. It is now a game of psychology and raw nerves.

[Pantagruel]

11. "take the oil and gas fields on Siberia"

Sorry, we're not the GOP . We don't advocate taking another country's natural resources by force. Remember the disastrous results of the "Project for a New American Century' .

[lagomorph777]

12. I was a bit tongue-in-cheek there.

I would actually prefer to make oil and gas obsolete. That would hurt Putin just as much, and benefit everybody else.

[Irish_Dem]

7. The world is less likely now to negotiate with Putin and give him anything?

His raw brutality makes it less likely that Ukraine will cede anything?

[USALiberal]

5. I'm sure we got the best people working on it.

[lagomorph777]

8. Actual best people this time, not Trumpie "best" people.

[lastlib]

9. Withdrawal, reparations, and an iron-clad pledge to stay within his borders......

...or NO let-up on sanctions against him.

[JasonMain]

14. No chance it will ever be good between us and Russia unless...

Putin is gone and a new leader emerges willing to do a reset. Putin has burned all his bridges and is now a pariah.