Rosenberg: Uncompromising Putin ups demands for peace with Ukraine

That is the same Russian president who ordered the full-scale invasion of Russia's neighbour nearly five years ago and who continues to reject the idea of a comprehensive ceasefire. The Kremlin spelt it out after talks with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner: "A new, long-term architecture of indivisible security and peace." Translated from Kremlin-speak, it means Moscow wants to change the security set-up of Europe in a way that benefits Russia. What Russia is pushing for is, potentially, the biggest change to European security arrangements since the end of the Cold War.

Western leaders dismissed such demands as an unacceptable Russian ultimatum. Two months later Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The "draft treaties" were put away.

Now they are out of the geopolitical filing cabinet, and being quoted again by the Kremlin. What is more, Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign policy aide, has suggested that Moscow is about to "add certain new considerations" to its list of demands in light of Western efforts "to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia".