The oppositional russian Telegram channel "The Moscow Times" informs about the supposed start of undisclosed negotiations between the USA and russia on the settlement of the conflict involving high-ranking representatives of the kremlin. "The Moscow Times" cites a former American official who is directly involved in the discussions and claims to visit moscow once every three months.
Allegedly, one of the options proposed by the USA is to conduct "repeat referendums in the annexed regions".
According to the source, the negotiations, referred to in the USA as the "1.5 track" occur at least twice a month, sometimes in an online format, and their subjects go far beyond the officially tough position of Western countries.
In particular, the USA has suggested to the kremlin to hold a new round of voting in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts of Ukraine to ascertain the true wishes of their residents - whether they want to live within the russian federation.
The "referendums" that took place last autumn, following which russia declared the annexation of Ukrainian territories, are considered fictitious by the USA. However, russian officials have declined the idea of conducting a repeat vote, according to "The Moscow Times" source.
"We made it clear that the USA is ready to work constructively with russia's concerns regarding national security", - the source says.
Allegedly, the kremlin officials were offered to open diplomatic channels with the USA, the European Union, the Global South and Ukraine. Additionally, during the negotiations, it became evident that Kyiv's chances of regaining the lost territories are slim, and an attempt to take back Crimea poses a real threat of tactical nuclear weapon use, as the source revealed. Despite this, the negotiations have reached an impasse, and the russian side cannot explain what it wants.