During internal talks on the war in Ukraine, America’s top general, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, has led a strong push in recent weeks to seek a diplomatic solution as the fighting heads toward a winter lull.   

  But Milley’s position is not widely supported by President Joe Biden’s national security team, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, none of whom believe it is time to make a serious push for talks on Ukraine, according to two government officials with knowledge.  with the discussion.   

  The result is a growing debate within the government over whether Ukraine’s recent battlefield gains should spark a renewed effort to seek some sort of negotiated end to the fighting, officials said.   

  Milley’s push for peace has come to the fore in recent days as Ukraine takes back the city of Kherson.  In remarks at the Economic Club of New York on Wednesday, Milley praised the Ukrainian military for fighting Russia to a stalemate, but said an outright military victory was impossible.   

  “When there is an opportunity for negotiation, when peace can be achieved, take it.  Seize the moment,” Milley said.   

  The comments did not surprise administration officials — given Milley’s defense of the position internally — but also raised concerns among some that the administration appears divided in the eyes of the Kremlin.   

  While some Biden officials are more open to exploring what diplomacy might look like, sources tell CNN that most of the top foreign policy and national security officials are wary of giving Russian President Vladimir Putin any kind of leverage at the negotiating table and believe that the Ukrainians should determine when to hold talks, not the US.   

  “That depends on the Ukrainians.  Nothing for Ukraine without Ukraine,” Biden said at a press conference on Wednesday when asked about the possibility of talks.   

  In internal briefings, officials said Milley tried to make it clear that he was not urging a Ukrainian capitulation, but rather that he believed now was the best time to move toward an end to the war before it dragged into the spring or beyond, leading to more death and destruction without changing the front line.   

  “He is in no rush to negotiate with Russia or pressure (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelensky,” said one official familiar with Milli’s thinking.  “It’s a conversation around a pause in the struggle towards a political end state.”   

  But this view is not widespread across the administration.  An official explained that the State Department is on the opposite side of the pole from Milley.  This dynamic has led to a unique situation where the military is pushing harder for diplomacy than US diplomats.   

  Milley’s position comes as the U.S. military has dug deep into its stockpile of U.S. weapons to support the Ukrainians and is currently looking around the world for materials to support Ukraine as it heads into winter — such as heaters and generators — that has raised concerns about how long that war might last, officials said.   

  The United States plans to buy 100,000 artillery rounds from South Korean arms makers to give to Ukraine, a US official said, part of a broader effort to find a weapon available for the high-intensity fighting in Ukraine.  As part of the deal, the US will buy 100,000 rounds of 155mm shell ammunition, which will then be transported to Ukraine via the US.   

  State Department spokesman Ned Price would not say Thursday whether the State Department agreed with Milley’s position.  Instead, Price pivoted to a position U.S. officials have often taken in recent months: The U.S. is siding with Zelensky, who has said a diplomatic solution is needed.   

  “The Ukrainians have made clear their belief that this war will ultimately end at the negotiating table.  The Russians have expressed the same sentiment from time to time,” Price said, before shifting the burden of proof to Putin.   

  “The onus remains on Moscow to demonstrate not only in words but also in actions that it is ready to negotiate, it is ready to respond to what the world has very clearly heard from our Ukrainian partners and that they are ready and willing to sit down and engage in good faith.”   

  The internal debate comes as senior US officials – including Sullivan – have urged Ukraine in recent weeks to signal it remains open to diplomatic talks with Russia, even after Zelensky signed an executive order in early October barring negotiations with Putin.   

  The US clearly understands why Zelensky would reject negotiations with the country that attacks Ukraine on a daily basis, and Putin has shown little willingness to enter into serious talks or make any concessions to Kyiv.  Instead, the U.S.’s immediate goal has been to shift its messaging strategy to ensure that Ukraine can maintain the international support that has helped it succeed on the battlefield thus far.   

  “The United States will be with Ukraine as long as it takes in this fight,” Sullivan said on a recent visit to Ukraine.  “There will be no wavering, no flags, no flinching in our support as we move forward.”