Russia accuses Ukraine and its “sponsors” of wanting to “torpedo” the peace talks

Russia's deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, claims that the version of the peace plan presented by Kiev this week “differs radically” from the one negotiated by Moscow's representatives with those of Washington in talks to end the war launched by Russia against Ukraine in February 2022, reports AFP.

“Our ability to make the final effort and reach an agreement will depend on our own work and the political will of the other side,” Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on television.

“Especially in a context where Kiev and its sponsors – especially within the European Union, which are not in favor of an agreement – have intensified their efforts to torpedo it,” the Russian official added.

Ukrainian officials announced Friday that President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet with his American counterpart on Sunday in Florida at Mar-a-Lago, according to the American publication Axios.

“Without proper resolution of the issues at the root of this crisis, it will simply be impossible to reach a definitive agreement,” Ryabkov said.

He argues that any possible deal must “stay within the boundaries” set by Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin at the August summit in Alaska – otherwise “no deal can be reached”.

“This plan, if we can call it that, is radically different from the 27 points that we have penciled in recent weeks, since the beginning of December, in collaboration with the American side,” claims the deputy foreign minister of Russia.

Zelenski presented a 20-point plan

The draft peace plan that Volodymyr Zelenskiy spoke about this week has 20 points and provides for a freeze on the front line in its current form, but also the readiness of Ukraine to withdraw its troops from the areas of the eastern Donetsk region that are still controlled by Kiev and to be transformed into a demilitarized zone, on the condition that Moscow withdraws its forces from an equivalent area in Donetsk.

“To be honest, the 20-point plan we worked on is 90% ready. Our task is to bring it to 100%. Every meeting and every conversation brings us closer to the desired result,” Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters on WhatsApp on Friday, according to the Kyiv Post.

Russian daily Kommersant wrote on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin does not accept the compromise proposed by Kiev regarding the Donbas region and wants all the Ukrainian territories it declared annexed in 2022.

According to the newspaper, the Kremlin leader said that Russia may be willing to cede some of the Ukrainian territory controlled by its forces, but that it wants all of Donbas.