Brussels / Kyiv : European countries are working with Ukraine on a 12-point peace plan to halt Russia’s war along the current frontlines. This is in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s renewed demands for land concessions. Sources who know about the situation say that a peace board led by US President Donald Trump could be in charge of putting the plan into action.
The suggestions say:
Both sides agree to stop fighting and stop moving into each other’s territory.
All of the deported children should go back to Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine are trading prisoners.
For Ukraine, security guarantees, money for rebuilding, and a quick path to EU membership.
Lifting of sanctions on Russia slowly, with $300 billion in frozen central bank reserves being returned once Moscow helps rebuild Ukraine after the war. If Russia starts fighting again, the sanctions will go back into effect.
The proposal also includes talks about how to run the occupied territory, although neither Europe nor Ukraine would legally recognize any land as Russian.
Russia and Trump’s part
Even though Russia has lost a lot of soldiers in the almost four-year-long war, it has so far turned down requests to terminate the battle along current lines. After a phone chat between Trump and Putin and a meeting at the White House with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Trump told both parties to “stop right now at the battle lines” and talk about territory later. Trump also said that he would meet with Putin in Budapest in the next few weeks.
On Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio talked to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, but they couldn’t agree on how to be ready for the summit. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesperson for the Kremlin, said that considerable planning was needed before any meeting and that there was no set date for it.
What Europe and Ukraine did
European officials strongly backed an immediate end to the war along current lines to make it easier for peace talks to happen. On Friday, the Coalition of the Willing will meet. On Thursday, the European Union will have a summit in Brussels to talk about more sanctions on Russia and financial help for Ukraine, including utilizing Russian assets that have been blocked.
Zelenskiy stated he would go to Budapest if he was invited, even though he didn’t like the city because Hungary is pro-Russia. Zelenskiy said, “We are getting closer to the end of the war… that doesn’t mean it will definitely end, but President Trump has done a lot in the Middle East and wants to end Russia’s war against Ukraine while he is still on that wave.”
Problems that keep coming up
During their talks, Trump is said to have pushed Zelenskiy to rapidly accept a deal that showed off Russia’s capabilities. Ukrainian allies, on the other hand, don’t see any change in Putin’s extreme demands, which include giving up the whole Donbas region, sections of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, and Crimea, which Russia took over in 2014. Ukrainian officials say that any talks should first stop the fighting along the current combat lines before dealing with questions of territory.