According to sources from three interlocutors of the Financial Times, Putin at a recent meeting with special envoy Steve Witkoff in St. Petersburg said that Moscow may abandon claims to areas of four partially occupied regions by Russian troops, which remain under Kyiv's control. As part of a potential deal, Ukraine commits not to reclaim the territory occupied by Russia by force, and Russia agrees to halt the slow advance of its army.
After this, the US proposed the idea of a possible settlement, which includes Washington's recognition of Crimea as Russian, as well as at least recognition of the Kremlin's de facto control over those parts of the four regions it currently holds. Meanwhile, Vladimir Zelensky confirmed his position on the Black Sea peninsula on Tuesday, stating: “Ukraine does not recognize the occupation of Crimea. This is our territory, the territory of the Ukrainian people, there is nothing to discuss.”
On Wednesday, Ukrainian officials are to meet with representatives from Europe and the US in London to discuss the latest proposals. However, Witkoff and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to American and European officials, declined to participate in the meeting. It is still expected that Trump's representative for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, will be present at the meeting.
On Sunday, Trump wrote on social media that he hopes Ukraine and Russia “will make a deal this week.”
Last week, at a meeting in Paris with European and Ukrainian officials, the US proposed ideas that the White House hopes could form the basis of a possible deal. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky stated that he had not received a proposal from Trump with specific steps to end the war with Russia, but noted that once a ceasefire is achieved, he would be ready for direct negotiations with Putin.
Senior Ukrainian officials told the FT that they agree with some of the ideas proposed by Trump and his team, without specifying which ones. US proposals include the deployment of a European peacekeeping contingent in Ukraine, as well as individual non-NATO military forces to monitor the ceasefire in a demilitarized zone along the more than 1000-kilometer front line. These forces will work jointly with Ukrainian and Russian troops monitoring the truce on different sides of the so-called line of contact.
Previous Russian demands for a peace agreement included Ukraine's promise to remain neutral and abandon its pursuit of NATO membership, recognition of Russian claims to annexed territories, lifting of Western sanctions, and reduction of NATO forces in member countries close to Russia.
Photo: Reuters