US to demand Putin accept Ukraine’s right to military force
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Agreeing to let Kyiv maintain its military, as part of a peace agreement, would mean President Vladimir Putin would have to give up on his announced goal for a “demilitarisation” of the country.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON – The US will demand that Russia accept Ukraine’s right to develop its own, adequately equipped army and defence industry as part of a peace agreement, according to people familiar with the matter, pushing back on Russia’s insistence that the country largely demilitarise as a condition to end the war.
US envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Russia to raise the issue with President Vladimir Putin, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private negotiations.
It is a signal that US President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking some concessions from the Kremlin, as well as Ukraine, as it tries to end a war that is now into its fourth year.
Critics have thus far viewed the US’ proposals as tilted towards Russia, including the Trump administration’s insistence that Ukraine give up its aspirations to join the Nato military alliance.
Agreeing to let Kyiv maintain its military, as demanded by Ukraine and its European allies, would mean Mr Putin would have to give up on his announced goal for a “demilitarisation” of the country, one of his main stated war aims.
The outcome on that issue may depend on Russia’s willingness to let Ukraine independently determine the scope of its future forces.
As part of a draft agreement discussed in the weeks after Russia launched its full-scale invasion
Those proposals would have seen the size of Ukraine’s army reduced by more than half.
Its number of tanks, artillery and rocket launchers would also have been slashed.
The Trump administration also wants Moscow to return Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which it seized early in its invasion of its neighbour.
The facility would then come under US control, to administer energy to both sides, said the sources.
They added that details of the plans have yet to be completed and may still change.
An administration official said Mr Witkoff’s outreach to Mr Putin is part of Mr Trump’s efforts to make peace, move beyond past failed strategies and end the deadly conflict.
Spokespeople for the US National Security Council and the State Department did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr Trump said on April 24 that he is “using a lot of pressure on both” sides in the war.
He said he thinks Mr Putin “wants to make a deal” and that “we’re going to find out very soon”.
Asked what concessions Russia has offered,
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, speaking in an interview with CBS News, said there are “several signs that we are moving in the right direction” towards a deal – while conceding that Russia still saw issues that needed to be negotiated.
“The statement by the President mentions a deal, and we are ready to reach a deal, but there are still some specific points, elements of this deal, which need to be fine-tuned,” Mr Lavrov said.
In addition to letting Ukraine maintain its military, the US wants to ensure that it has passage over the Dnieper River and that land occupied by Russia in the Kharkiv region is returned.
Mr Putin has demanded recognition of the entirety of the Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Kherson regions, despite having failed to fully occupy them.
Russia has continued to bomb Ukrainian cities even as talks continued but it has insisted it is prepared for peace.
Overnight, Russia launched the biggest air strike of the year against Ukraine, targeting Kyiv and killing at least 12 people
This forced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to cut short a visit to South Africa
Before he left, Mr Zelensky told reporters that “we can’t talk about red lines without an unconditional ceasefire”.
At a meeting in Paris last week, Mr Trump’s team presented Europe and Ukraine with a proposal to end the war that would also see the US recognise Ukraine’s Crimea region as Russian while freezing most other occupied territories along current battle lines, effectively leaving them under Moscow’s control, Bloomberg News previously reported.
Crimea was taken by the Kremlin in 2014 following an invasion and a subsequent referendum held under occupation. The international community has resisted recognising the peninsula as Russian to avoid legitimising the illegal annexation.
Mr Zelensky has repeatedly said he will not cede territory to Moscow.
Mr Trump said in a post on Truth Social this week that nobody is asking Mr Zelensky to recognise Crimea, and he lashed out at the Ukrainian President, accusing him of undermining peace negotiations.
“I think we have a deal with Russia. We have to get a deal with Zelensky.
“I hope that Zelensky – I thought it might be easier to deal with Zelensky. So far, it has been harder,” Mr Trump said on April 23 in the Oval Office.
Then on April 24, Mr Trump criticised Mr Putin
“I am not happy with the Russian strikes on Kyiv. Not necessary, and very bad timing,” Mr Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Vladimir, STOP! 5,000 soldiers a week are dying. Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”
The US has indicated that any peace agreement will need security guarantees for Ukraine to ensure that a deal holds, without specifying exactly what form such assurances will take.
It has also proposed lifting sanctions on Moscow if there is a deal.
The UK and France have been leading efforts to form a post-war “reassurance force” in Ukraine, but the US has so far not offered to contribute to it or to provide Kyiv with military aid in the future, some of the sources said.
Additional options to guarantee an agreement could include a non-European peacekeeping force, some of the same sources added.
Russia has said it will not accept troops from Nato countries in Ukraine.
Mr Trump and other US officials have warned that they will walk away from the talks if a deal is not reached soon.
“Now, if for some reason, one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we’re just going to say, ‘you’re foolish, you’re fools, you’re horrible people, and we’re going to just take a pass’,” Mr Trump said at the White House last week. “But hopefully, we won’t have to do that.” BLOOMBERG
