Sometimes it's not what's said that makes the biggest impression. It's the reaction. In the Russian Far East, Vladimir Putin delivered a warning to the West: don't even think about sending soldiers - and that includes peacekeepers - to Ukraine. If some troops appear there, the Russian president stated, especially now while the fighting's going on, we proceed from the premise that these will be legitimate targets for destruction. The audience at the economic forum in Vladivostok burst into applause, seemingly endorsing the threat to 'destroy' potential Western troops. This came just a day after Kyiv's allies had pledged a post-war 'reassurance force' for Ukraine.

Putin's insistence to meet Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky only on Russian soil was similarly met with applause, but has been dismissed outside of Russia as a political ploy. His rhetoric encapsulates the Kremlin's position on the war: a desire for peace that is conditional on their terms. This inflexible stance is bolstered by domestic perceptions of military initiative in Ukraine, recent diplomatic successes bolstering Russia's image, and a perceived failure of the West to isolate Russia.

As the prospects for peace look dim, with both sides seemingly on different paths to victory, the prospect for a resolution remains uncertain. Putin's vision of 'light at the end of the tunnel' contrasts sharply with Ukraine's and Europe's commitment to ending hostilities and securing lasting guarantees against future aggression. The world watches closely as these divergent roads unfold.