No ceasefire, but a peace agreement that provides for the transfer of part of Ukrainian territory in exchange for security guarantees for Kiev , without NATO membership. After a three-hour summit, Donald Trump finally endorsed Vladimir Putin's position, who, not coincidentally, upon returning to Moscow, called the summit "timely and very useful."
And the subsequent telephone conversation between Trump and Zelensky was not at all easy : it lasted about an hour and the tone became raised , according to Axios.
During the phone call, made aboard Air Force One returning from Anchorage, Trump invited Zelensky to a face-to-face meeting at the White House on Monday . This meeting promises to be very complicated: Zelensky wanted a ceasefire, and Trump himself, upon leaving for Alaska, had said that without a truce he would be "disappointed," only to later change his mind and endorse Putin's position. But there will be no ceasefire; a peace agreement could only be reached if Kiev cedes some territory.
"Putin can take all of Donetsk"
Tensions were high, Axios reports, when Trump told Zelensky what Putin had told him about the situation on the battlefield. Namely, that Russia could quickly take over the entire Donetsk region and other areas where fighting is ongoing. "These are Putin's lies," Zelensky replied .
The Tsar's conditions on the territories, two scenarios
But beyond this, the tsar's conditions regarding the territories will dominate the debate. In exchange for the transfer of certain territories, Putin is reportedly ready to promise in writing not to occupy other Ukrainian areas or attack other countries .
There are two very similar accounts of exactly what territories Putin is demanding. According to the New York Times, the tsar requested the entire Donbass, including the areas not occupied by the Russians . In exchange, Putin offered a ceasefire in the rest of Ukraine, along the current battle lines, and a written promise not to attack Ukraine or any other European country again. Furthermore, Trump also invited European leaders to Monday's summit to "support" Putin's plan and thus isolate Zelensky .
According to the Financial Times, Putin has demanded that Kiev withdraw from Donetsk as a condition for ending the war . This move would give Moscow full control of a territory it has partially occupied for over a decade and where its troops have been advancing at the fastest pace since November. Furthermore, the newspaper reports that, in exchange for the Donetsk region, Putin declared that he would freeze the front line in the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhia , where his forces occupy large swathes of territory, and not launch new attacks to conquer more territory.
However, there is actually no great difference between the demands reported by the two newspapers, given that Donbass includes the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, of which Moscow has occupied almost all.
Guarantees on the language
Finally, Putin wants Russian to be recognized as the official language in Ukraine and is asking for security guarantees for the Orthodox churches under the Moscow Patriarchate.
NATO and security guarantees for Kiev
Then there's the question of NATO. Putin reiterated his demand to "solve the root causes" of the conflict and halt NATO's expansion eastward . What security guarantees are there for Ukraine? According to reports from some European leaders, there's talk of guarantees along the lines of NATO's Article 5 (the one on collective self-defense, according to which "an attack against one member of the Alliance will be considered an attack against all") without Kiev's direct involvement in the Atlantic Alliance .
How these guarantees will be implemented remains to be seen, but Trump has always said that it is up to the Europeans to commit forces and resources to Ukraine's defense.
Putin's words
The conversation with Donald Trump in Alaska on the conflict in Ukraine was "timely and very useful," and "brings us closer to the necessary decisions" for peace , the Russian president said at a meeting of the country's top leaders. Putin, quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency, added that "eliminating the root causes of the conflict should be the basis for a solution." A clear reference to Kiev's possible accession to NATO.
(Unioneonline/L)