Proposals to give away Donbas, reduce the Armed Forces and freeze the front: what is wrong with the new US peace plan
19 November 21:28
In recent days, the global and Ukrainian media have begun to actively discuss “open” and “secret” plans to end the war in Ukraine, which the public will allegedly learn about in the near future. The discussion has especially intensified against the backdrop of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Turkey, where he is expected to speak again about ending the fighting.
What exactly is being discussed and whether these proposals include those that will bring the country’s exit from the years-long war closer, "Komersant Ukrainian" found out and analyzed.
The American news website Axios was one of the first to report that a new plan to end the war would soon appear, and that the United States and Russia were secretly working on it. According to the media, the development is headed by US Presidential Special Representative Steve Witkoff, who just flew to Turkey to visit Zelenskyy today. The document allegedly consists of 4 sections: peace in Ukraine, security guarantees, security in Europe, and US relations with Russia and Ukraine.
A little later, the international news agency Reuters published an article that stated the following: Ukraine did not take any part in the plan to end the war, as it was discussed exclusively between representatives of official Moscow and Washington. However, the Ukrainian side “received signals on a number of proposals.” In addition, European countries were also left out of the discussion. All of this was published by AN with reference to a comment by a Ukrainian official who spoke to journalists on condition of anonymity.
The Ukrainian leader is to learn the full terms of the plan on November 20, when they will allegedly be announced to Zelenskyy by the US military, which will arrive in Ukraine for this purpose. And immediately after the planned conversation, they will go to Moscow. The media even names their names and positions: US Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll and Chief of Staff General Randy George.
In the article, the AN emphasizes the position of Donald Trump and his representatives on this issue. They believe that the President of Ukraine has no choice and must agree to the plan to end the war agreed upon by Washington and Moscow, whatever his demands.
Meanwhile, the American media outlet Politico, citing sources close to the US president, wrote the following: the Trump administration expects that a framework agreement to end the war in Ukraine will be reached by all parties by the end of the month. And perhaps this landmark event will happen even before the end of this week.
Give up territories and reduce the army? What points does the American peace plan contain?
According to Reuters, the US proposals for ending the war include Ukraine’s relinquishment of territories, some weapons, and a reduction in the size of the Armed Forces.
“Washington has made it clear to President Zelensky that Ukraine must accept a framework document developed by the United States to end the war,” the AN article says.
Axios, in turn, citing an American official who spoke to the media on condition of anonymity, adds that President Zelensky will be offered an ultimatum:
- give Russia full control over Donbas;
- withdraw troops from the territories controlled by Russia;
- create a demilitarized zone where both sides of the conflict will not be able to deploy their troops;
- “freeze the front line in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.
According to media reports, the draft framework agreement contains 28 points in total. Qatar and Turkey participated in their development. In particular, Qatar took part in the negotiations between US Presidential Envoy Steve Vitkoff and current NSDC Secretary Rustem Umerov.
They also stated that:
- Russia will return part of the territories of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions if new negotiations are started;
- The United States and other countries recognize Crimea and Donbas as Russian territory.
However, the most resonant information about the US and Russia’s plan to end the war in Ukraine was published by The Financial Times journalist Christopher Miller.
According to him, it is actually about Ukraine’s surrender, as Moscow and Washington’s demands include reducing the number of the Armed Forces by at least half and Kyiv’s refusal to give up certain types of weapons.
The FT also wrote in one of its articles on November 19 that another condition of the “peace plan” is the alleged demand to grant Russian the status of the official language in Ukraine and to grant official recognition to the Russian Orthodox Church.
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“Witkoff’s peace plan”: how the parties react
According to American and international media, the White House is confident: Ukraine must agree to all the conditions. Especially against the backdrop of the latest high-profile corruption scandal (here we are talking about the NABU and SAPO Midas operation and the so-called Mindich tapes – ed.)
Instead, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy allegedly has a ready-made plan to end the war and even brought it with him to Turkey. According to some media outlets, this is why Vitkoff refused to talk to him in detail, although he was ready for a dialogue on the morning of November 19.
Official Moscow has so far denied the existence of any agreements to end the war in Ukraine.
For example, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova says that Russia is not aware of the new peace plan for Ukraine, which, according to media reports, the United States has already discussed with Russia and will announce to Zelensky tomorrow.
Russia has not received a draft agreement on Ukraine of this level from the United States. If the American side had any proposals, they would have been communicated through the established channels of communication between the foreign ministries of the two countries,” she said.
It is worth noting that the case of the new peace plan has already been addressed by the well-known Ukrainian TV presenter Natalia Moseychuk. She openly wrote on social media that Ukraine is being forced to surrender.
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