The Washington Post reports:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky outlined his conditions Friday for entering peace talks with Russia, demanding a restoration of preinvasion borders, the return of more than 5 million refugees, membership in the European Union and accountability from Russian military leaders before Kyiv would consider laying down its arms.

Zelensky’s slate of requirements, which he listed during an online forum organized by Chatham House, are in direct conflict with the military objectives Russian leaders have articulated as they bear down on the Donbas region and southern Ukraine — inflicting additional casualties Friday in apparent violation of a cease-fire.

They also come as Ukraine and its Western allies await possible pronouncements or dramatic shifts on the battlefield by the Kremlin before Monday, when Russia observes Victory Day, commemorating the surrender of Nazi Germany and the end of the European front in World War II.

New curfews have been announced in Zaporizhzhia, a Ukrainian enclave that abuts regions experiencing heavy fighting, while the mayor of Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, warned residents to be ready for increased missile attacks on the holiday. Britain’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, warned Friday that Russia would probably try to complete its takeover of the port city of Mariupol — where a small cadre of forces and civilians remain holed up in the Azovstal steel plant — before the Victory Day celebrations. [Continue reading…]