Let's first look at the situation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, "Russia Today" reported on May 17 that Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia has no intention of occupying Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city near the Russian border. It is reported that Russia has made significant progress in the region in recent days.
On May 18, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia is willing to engage in dialogue with the West, and that the West's increased supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine is "a signal that it is not ready for a serious dialogue."
It is not difficult for us to come to the conclusion that Russia has obvious advantages on the battlefield, has more initiative, and takes the initiative to signal that it is willing to negotiate, however, the Western world has no such intentions.
Of course, over the past two years, Russia has repeatedly expressed its desire to move to the negotiating table, but Russia has not taken the initiative to end the conflict.
The reason why this issue is discussed at this juncture, in addition to the fact that Russia has more bargaining weight on the battlefield, the European camp also has variables that hope for short-term peace talks on the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
It is now mid-May, only two months before the 2024 Paris Olympics, a global sports event, and according to the usual practice, it is reasonable for French President Emmanuel Macron to call on Russia and Ukraine to truce during the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Moreover, France's operation has received broader international support.
However, unexpectedly, in an interview with the media on May 17, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky categorically rejected France's call for a truce during the Olympics, despite successive defeats on the battlefield.
Many observers have also said that not only Ukraine is rejecting a truce, but Russia is also refusing a truce. The core of the problem is that Ukraine is too tough, and Russia's current situation is that there is no way to negotiate, it is just "forced to be tough".
Combined with the above analysis, it is not difficult to find that Russia has the idea of negotiation, and France also has a proposal for a truce during the Olympic Games, which has also received broad support from the international community, but neither of them is enough to shake the determination of the United States to continue to fight on the battlefield in Ukraine.
Also on May 17, according to US media reports, France invited Russia to participate in the commemoration of the Normandy landings, which caused dissatisfaction among Britain and the United States and other countries. It is reported that the invitation was sent last month, and although it is not necessarily related to the "truce" incident, it shows from the side that the Western camp is in a state of serious anxiety about France's unique position.
If the United States has more initiative on the issue of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the United States is slightly passive on the issue of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The reason for the initiative is that the vast majority of European allies support Ukraine; The reason for the passivity is that the vast majority of Europe's allies do not support Israel.
The result was a situation in which the United States "passively" supported Israel.
Why has the powerful United States been reduced to such passivity?
It is because both the Republican and Democratic parties in the United States are strongly supporting Israel, especially in the year of the 2024 US presidential election, both parties are concerned about two issues, that is, the sponsorship and votes. If you want to win the presidential election, you need one without the other. Even in the face of opposition from almost the entire international community, the United States has remained half-veiled in its support for Israel. In other words, on the issue of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the core factor is still the United States.
This means that only after the US presidential election is over can the issue of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict be substantially changed.
Let's look at Asia, since 2024, the Philippines has continued to create friction in the South China Sea, making the region a global hot spot, and the reason why the Philippines has suddenly become "arrogant" is just relying on the United States to fake the tiger's might, but as everyone knows, the United States is also using the Philippines to bluff.
The year of the 2024 U.S. presidential election is theoretically the weakest year for the United States in dealing with international affairs, with both parties busy dealing with internal issues and worrying that the United States' position as world hegemony will be challenged. What is surprising is that Israel, taking advantage of the "weakness" of the United States, has become a wild horse that has escaped from the leash, seizing the rare window of time and being unscrupulous.