Photo taken on Feb 28, 2022 shows the US Capitol building, seen through a barrier fence, in Washington, DC, the United States. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

More than two months into the Russia-Ukraine conflict, there is still no end in sight.

It is heartrending to see the humanitarian crisis unfolding, with millions of refugees having fled their homes and countless towns and cities left in complete ruins.

Indeed, nothing is more important right now than a negotiated settlement to end the fighting. The parties involved must try to reach a deal as soon as possible so that peace can be restored, and all war-induced suffering put to an end.

It was to push the two belligerents in that direction that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres traveled to Moscow on Tuesday and Kyiv a day later for talks.

His peace mission came at a time when safe humanitarian corridors are urgently needed to evacuate civilians from the Azovstal steel complex in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol where heavy fighting is still going on, and one positive outcome from his visit was that Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in principle that the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross should be involved in the evacuation of civilians from the steel complex.

Another positive to take from the talks between Putin and Guterres in the Kremlin on Tuesday is that Putin told the UN chief that "we still hope that we will be able to reach agreements on the diplomatic track … We are negotiating, we do not reject (talks)", which offers hope that the discussions will yield some fruit.

Yet rather than negotiated peace, the United States and its NATO allies seem more interested in achieving a complete victory in their proxy war against Russia. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin convened a meeting on Tuesday of officials from about 40 countries at the US air base at Ramstein, Germany, pledging more military aid for Ukraine, including heavier and more sophisticated equipment. He promised that NATO will "keep moving heaven and earth" to meet Ukraine's "security requirements".

Actually, the US has left no doubt about its agenda. During a trip to Kyiv on Monday, Austin made it clear the US aims to "weaken" Russia's military capabilities.

That involves providing Ukraine with an endless supply of weapons systems. Such a strategy goes against the world's hopes for peace, and risks causing an escalation in the conflict. Not to mention the high possibility that Ukraine will be devastated in the process, as well as grave consequences to the world's political and economic stability, even the possibility of a third world war.

Rather than fanning the flames of Washington's fire, the international community should make concerted efforts to promote a negotiated settlement of the crisis.