Reuters on April 25 printed the total textual content of a U.S. peace proposal offered by Particular Envoy Steve Witkoff to European officers in Paris on April 17, providing the clearest look but on the Trump administration's plan to finish Russia's full-scale warfare in Ukraine.
The publication additionally launched a counterproposal delivered by Ukrainian and European officers earlier this week. The paperwork expose disagreements on crucial points, together with territorial concessions, sanctions aid, safety ensures, and the dimensions of Ukraine's armed forces.
The U.S. draft features a provision to legally acknowledge Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and de facto settle for Russian management over Ukrainian territory seized since 2022.
In distinction, the European-Ukrainian proposal insists that territorial questions ought to solely be addressed after a full ceasefire and begin from the idea of the road of management.
Safety ensures additionally stay a key dividing line. The U.S. textual content affords imprecise language a couple of "sturdy safety assure" for Ukraine to be offered by unspecified European and "pleasant" international locations. It additionally requires Kyiv to desert its bid to affix NATO.
The Ukrainian-European proposal requires dependable, enforceable ensures from allies — together with the U.S. — and rejects limits on Ukraine's navy or its capability to host allied forces.
The paperwork additionally diverge sharply on sanctions coverage. The U.S. plan requires lifting sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014, together with these associated to Crimea.
The Ukrainian-European textual content proposes sanctions aid solely after establishing a "sustainable peace" and contains mechanisms to reimpose them if Russia violates any settlement.
Kyiv additionally requires the return of all deported and illegally displaced Ukrainian children, which the U.S. proposal doesn’t point out.
The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Denisova
Whereas proposing concessions on core political points, the U.S. plan does embrace circumstances for Moscow.
It calls for that Russia return occupied in 2022 Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant to Ukrainian management, beneath U.S. oversight, to supply energy to cities on either side of the entrance line.
The plan additionally requires restoring Ukrainian management over the Kinburn Spit, offering safe passage throughout the Dnipro River, and reclaiming occupied areas of Kharkiv Oblast — round 200 sq. kilometers (77 sq. miles) at present held by Russian forces.
On the financial entrance, the U.S. draft outlines a future settlement on cooperation and reconstruction, pledging monetary assist for Ukraine's restoration and infrastructure improvement.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has firmly rejected any peace phrases involving territorial concessions. "This violates our Structure. That is our territory, the territory of the folks of Ukraine," he stated on April 22.
Ukraine has already accepted a 30-day ceasefire proposal launched by the U.S. in March, offered Russia reciprocates. Moscow has to date rejected the ceasefire and continues offensive operations throughout the entrance.
Regardless of promising to finish the warfare swiftly, U.S. President Donald Trump has but to impose new sanctions or take different steps to strain the Kremlin.
The Kyiv IndependentTim Zadorozhnyy
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