Ukrainian and US officials meet for emergency talks on plan to end war with Russia – live | Ukraine
Western officials held talks in Geneva about the US’ Ukraine plan after Trump claimed the deal was not a ‘final offer’
Welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Ukrainian and American officials will meet for emergency talks in Switzerland on Sunday to discuss a draft US plan to end the war, which is widely seen as favoring Moscow despite Russia launching a full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The draft 28-point plan, leaked last week, includes proposals that Kiev has previously rejected, including the transfer of Ukraine’s eastern regions Donbas area.
It is also stated that Ukraine should limit its army and give up its goals of joining NATO. The plan unspecifies that Ukraine will receive “reliable security guarantees.”
Washington has given Kiev until Thursday to respond, but Kiev wants changes to the draft plan, which European and Ukrainian officials say amounts to “surrender”.
US president, Donald TrumpHe said the plan was not a “final proposal” and suggested an extension might be possible. He has repeatedly expressed disappointment on both issues. Vladimir Putin And Volodymyr ZelenskyyRussian and Ukrainian leaders due to lack of progress in negotiations.
A meeting was hastily convened in Geneva later today; here national security advisors from the E3 (France, UK and Germany) will meet with EU, American and Ukrainian officials for further discussions.
Both the US Secretary of State and Marco Rubioand US special envoy, Steve WitkoffHe will attend the Geneva meeting on Sunday.
The Ukrainian delegation is led by the head of Zelenskyy’s office. Andriy Yermakand includes senior security officials.
Stay with us as we bring you the latest throughout the day.
important events
The plan, which approves some of Russia’s basic demands, was approved by the Russian ambassador. Kirill Dmitriev He reportedly spent three days with his American counterpart Steve Witkoff In Miami.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday that Witkoff and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been “quietly” working on the plan with both Russia and Ukraine for about a month. Rubio said the plan was “written by the United States.”
President of Russia Vladimir Putin He described the plan as the basis for a solution to the war, but added that Moscow may object to some of the proposals.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy Because he was dependent on the United States for arms and intelligence sharing, he was careful not to publicly criticize or reject the plan. But Zelenskyy said Kiev was being put under unbearable pressure.
In a somber 10-minute speech outside the presidential palace on Friday, the Ukrainian leader said his country faced an impossible choice: preserve its national honor or risk losing an important partner in the United States.
It comes amid allegations that Kiev has frozen the preparation of Trump proposals demanding major concessions from Ukraine.
What is included in the draft plan to end the war in Ukraine?
Here’s some more detail on what’s included in the draft US-Russia plan:
– Area: The plan states that “Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk will be de facto recognized as Russia, including by the United States.” Kiev still partially holds Luhansk and Donetsk, which form the Donbas industrial belt that is on the front line of the war. Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014.
According to the plan, the regions where Ukraine withdrew in Donetsk will be considered a demilitarized zone where Russian forces will not enter.
It was stated that the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhia, which Russia falsely claimed to have annexed, would be “frozen along the line of contact”.
– Security: The plan calls for Ukraine to reduce its military to 600,000 personnel, a reduction of hundreds of thousands of personnel compared to its current size.
NATO would agree not to station troops in Ukraine, dashing Kiev’s hopes for a European peacekeeping force and the country would be banned from joining NATO.
– Diplomacy: Under the proposed agreement, Russia would be “reintegrated into the global economy” and allowed to return to the G8 after nearly four years of harsh sanctions.
According to many media outlets, the document states, “Russia is expected not to invade neighboring countries and NATO is expected not to expand further.”
But if Russia re-occupies Ukraine, all sanctions will be withdrawn – along with a “decisive and coordinated military response.” In addition, $100 billion of frozen Russian assets will be allocated to the reconstruction of Ukraine.
Western officials held talks in Geneva about the US’ Ukraine plan after Trump claimed the deal was not a ‘final offer’
Welcome back to our live coverage of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Ukrainian and American officials will meet for emergency talks in Switzerland on Sunday to discuss a draft US plan to end the war, which is widely seen as favoring Moscow despite Russia launching a full-scale invasion in February 2022.
The draft 28-point plan, leaked last week, includes proposals that Kiev has previously rejected, including the transfer of Ukraine’s eastern regions Donbas area.
It is also stated that Ukraine should limit its army and give up its goals of joining NATO. The plan unspecifies that Ukraine will receive “reliable security guarantees.”
Washington has given Kiev until Thursday to respond, but Kiev wants changes to the draft plan, which European and Ukrainian officials say amounts to “surrender”.
US president, Donald TrumpHe said the plan was not a “final proposal” and suggested an extension might be possible. He has repeatedly expressed disappointment on both issues. Vladimir Putin And Volodymyr ZelenskyyRussian and Ukrainian leaders due to lack of progress in negotiations.
A meeting was hastily convened in Geneva later today; here national security advisors from the E3 (France, UK and Germany) will meet with EU, American and Ukrainian officials for further discussions.
Both the US Secretary of State and Marco Rubioand US special envoy, Steve WitkoffHe will attend the Geneva meeting on Sunday.
The Ukrainian delegation is led by the head of Zelenskyy’s office. Andriy Yermakand includes senior security officials.
Stay with us as we bring you the latest throughout the day.
