The call lasted two hours and marked the end of three days of negotiations between US and Ukrainian representatives in Miami on the “peace plan” proposed by President Trump, the article says. Zelensky called this conversation “very substantive and constructive.”
According to the publication’s interlocutor, the discussion of the territory was difficult, because the aggressor country Russia is still demanding that Ukraine withdraw its troops from the entire Donbass. At the same time, the United States is trying to develop new ways to resolve the issue, another source said.
Another main aspect of the conversation was US security guarantees for Ukraine. One of the sources said the parties had made significant progress, but further work was needed to ensure that both sides interpreted the draft security guarantees in the same way.
Ukraine's Ambassador to the United States Olga Stefanishyna, in a commentary to Axios on the same day, confirmed that it is the territories and security guarantees that are the most difficult and that Ukraine strives to ensure “realism, fairness and the sustainable nature of agreed decisions.” According to her, negotiations will continue, and “personal meetings will be crucial.”
Umerov and Ignatov are expected to return to Europe from the Miami talks and hold a briefing with Zelensky in London on Monday to discuss the US proposals. The Ukrainian official emphasized that “we need to take all the drafts and brainstorm.”
Axios noted that further talks and meetings with Witkoff and Kushner are planned in the near future.
Context
The Ukrainian and US delegations held meetings on the “peace plan” on November 23 in Geneva, November 30, December 4 and December 5 in Miami.
Zelensky said that there are 20 points in the “peace plan,” but “some things still need to be worked out.” The three most important and sensitive issues are territories, frozen assets of the Russian Federation and security guarantees for Ukraine, the president noted.
The media reported that there are three pillars regarding which the Russian Federation will not compromise in peace negotiations on Ukraine: the territory of Donbass, limiting the number of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and recognition of the occupied territories of Ukraine by America and Europe.
On December 2, illegitimate Russian President Vladimir Putin, Vitkoff and Kushner discussed several “peace plan” projects to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian war for about five hours at negotiations in Moscow, Putin’s assistant Yuri Ushakov said after the meeting. According to him, “no compromise was found” on the territorial issue. One of the main issues at the negotiations was Ukraine’s membership in NATO, Ushakov noted.
On December 2, Zelensky noted that the decision to end the war should not contain “a single game behind Ukraine’s back,” and regarding security guarantees, it is necessary to clearly understand “what it will be, how it will be.”.
On December 3, Trump expressed the opinion that Putin “would like to end the war.” However, on December 4, Putin said that the aggressor country of the Russian Federation would allegedly “in any case” seize the Ukrainian Donbass and other territories of southern Ukraine – “militarily or otherwise.”
In transcripts of telephone conversations released on December 4 by Spiegel, European leaders expressed doubt about US peacekeeping initiatives. EU leaders warned Zelensky that the US could betray Ukraine and Europe and that the Ukrainian president should be “extremely careful in the coming days.”
On December 5, The Wall Street Journal wrote that European leaders recently addressed Zelensky with a “stern warning” not to agree to Russian demands without “reinforced concrete security guarantees” from the United States.
