As Russia continues to wage its brutal war against Ukraine, calls have increased for Washington, including Donald Trump when he assumes the presidency in January, to force a halt to the fighting in order to save Ukrainian lives. For example, in the Nov. 17 New York Times, Megan Stack wrote that Trump should “speed up the inevitable” and push Kyiv into talks — talks that would almost certainly entail Ukraine ceding land to Russia while receiving no meaningful security guarantees in return.

Such calls downplay or arrogantly disregard Ukrainian agency. It will be Ukraine’s choice whether to enter into negotiations and whether to accept a settlement. Ukrainians may not wish to be saved if the settlement terms amount to total capitulation. 

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