What do we know about America’s proposal to end the war with Russia
While the Ukrainian President is scheduled to meet with a Pentagon delegation in Kyiv, Ukraine has accepted an American proposal with a view to ending the war with Russia, which appears to be very favorable to the Kremlin. According to American media Axios, Washington and Moscow worked in secret on its development, but the Kremlin refused to comment.
The plan takes maximum conditions previously put forward by Russia and has been rejected in the past by Kyiv, which considers it a de facto surrender. Here’s what we know about this proposal:
The plan includes “acknowledgment (annexation) Crimea and other territories taken over by Russia »which controls nearly 20% of Ukraine’s territory, a senior official familiar with the matter told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on condition of anonymity.
Moscow has demanded in the past that Kyiv hand over the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, whose annexation they have been demanding since September 2022 without having full control, apart from the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed in 2014.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its troops from the Donetsk and Luhansk (East) regions in exchange for freezing front lines in the Zaporizhia and Kherson (South) regions, according to Turkey, which brokered three rounds of direct talks between Kyiv and Moscow this year.
Ukraine refuses to recognize the occupied territories as belonging to Russia, and admits that reclaiming them by military means may be impossible. Most importantly, ceding the heavily fortified eastern region risks leaving Ukraine vulnerable to future Russian attacks.
The proposal also provides “reduction of the Ukrainian army to 400,000 people”or almost half of its troops and the abandonment of all its long-range weapons, again according to the senior official.
Limiting Ukraine’s military capabilities, halting arms shipments from its allies and banning mobilization are among the demands already expressed by Moscow, which has larger and better armed forces.
Russia strongly opposes the presence of NATO troops in Ukraine as well as Kyiv’s membership in the Alliance. Kyiv itself demands security guarantees from the West, including European troops on its territory.
