US ‘tells Ukraine that security guarantees will only be given in return for Donbas’ | EUROtoday

The US has signalled that safety ensures will solely be promised to Ukraine if it agrees to give up territory to Russia within the Donbas, in response to a report.

White House officers are stated to have advised Volodymyr Zelensky that safety ensures will solely be given if a deal is agreed to offer Moscow management of the whole area in jap Ukraine – a pink line for Kyiv.

Sources near the discussions advised the Financial Times that the Trump administration would supply extra weapons to strengthen Ukraine’s navy within the occasion of a peace deal if Kyiv withdraws its forces from the area. Mr Zelensky has repeatedly acknowledged that Ukraine won’t surrender any occupied land with no referendum on territory.

European and Ukrainian officers see Washington’s place as an try to position stress on Kyiv to comply with a deal, with doubts raised over whether or not the White House is able to make binding commitments on safety.

Anna Kelly, the White House’s deputy press secretary, advised The Independent that the FT report was “totally false”.

“The United States’ only role in the peacemaking process is to bring both sides together to make a deal,” deputy spokesperson Anna Kelly stated.

“It’s a shame that the Financial Times is letting malicious actors lie anonymously in order to muck up the peace process, which is in a great place after this weekend’s historic trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi.”

The talks had been held behind closed doorways and marked the primary time officers from the US, Russia and Ukraine had sat in the identical room for discussions on peace because the invasion started in February 2022.

Officials concerned within the talks advised the Kyiv Post that each side had held discussions on key points similar to territory and the way forward for the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia energy plant that went past “maximalist” public statements by each side.

A US official advised the newspaper that each side had been “testing how flexible each other’s red lines really are”. Talks will resume on Sunday.

Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s overseas minister, stated in an interview with European Truth printed on Tuesday that there had been a “qualitative change” within the peace talks, particularly within the contributors within the Russian delegation.

“These are completely different folks, and there have been no extra pseudo-historical lectures. The conversations had been very centered,” he stated.

Moscow’s delegation was beforehand headed by Vladimir Medinski, an aide to Vladimir Putin infamous for holding lengthy historic discussions through the talks. It is now being led by General Igor Kostyukov, the director of Russia’s GRU navy intelligence company.