Laura Gozzi
Ukraine has said a “common understanding” has been reached with the US on a peace deal aimed at ending the war with Russia.
The proposal is based on a 28-point plan presented to Kyiv by the US last week, which American and Ukrainian officials worked on during weekend talks in Geneva.
In a post on social media, US President Donald Trump said the original plan “has been fine-tuned, with additional input from both sides”.
He added: “I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians.”
No date was given for the proposed meetings.
The Kremlin previously said that Russia had not yet been consulted on the new draft deal – warning it may not accept amendments to last week’s plan.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned that while Moscow had been in favour of the initial US framework, the situation would be “fundamentally different” if it had undergone substantial changes.
As of Tuesday morning the Kremlin had not received a copy of the new plan, Lavrov said, accusing Europe of undermining US peace efforts.
American officials did not publicly address Russia’s concerns, although US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Russian representatives held meetings on Monday and Tuesday in Abu Dhabi.
Some of the issues over which Russia and Ukraine are still deeply at odds have reportedly remained unaddressed so far – including security guarantees for Kyiv and control of several embattled regions in Ukraine’s east.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that he was ready to meet Trump to discuss “sensitive points”, with his administration aiming for a meeting before the end of the month.
“I am counting on further active cooperation with the American side and with President (Donald) Trump. Much depends on America, because Russia pays the greatest attention to American strength,” he said.
The White House has not commented on the prospect of bilateral talks, but Trump wrote on social media that he looked forward to meeting with presidents Zelensky and Putin “soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages”.
Despite the White House’s relative optimism, European leaders seemed doubtful that after almost four years of war peace could be within reach. France’s Emmanuel Macron said he saw “no Russian will for a ceasefire”, while Downing Street warned there was “a long way to go – a tough road ahead.”
Ukraine’s European allies, the “Coalition of the Willing”, held a virtual meeting chaired by Macron and UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Tuesday.
During the call – which was also joined by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio – the leaders agreed to set up a task force to “solidify” the security guarantees that will be offered to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal.
The issue of security guarantees is only one of the areas on which Moscow and Kyiv are at odds. On Monday, Zelensky said the “main problem” blocking peace was Putin’s demand for legal recognition of the territory Russia had seized.
Moscow has consistently demanded full Ukrainian withdrawal from the whole of the eastern Donbas, made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Russian forces also control the Crimean peninsula and large parts of two other regions, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
The latest round of diplomacy came after Russia carried out heavy strikes on Ukraine on Monday into Tuesday, firing 22 missiles and more than 460 drones on targets across the country. The attacks resulted in the deaths of 14 people.
Meanwhile, the Russian defence ministry said it had intercepted 249 Ukrainian drones overnight, including over the Black Sea and Kursk, and that at least three people had been killed in the southern Rostov region.
Tens of thousands of soldiers and thousands of civilians have been killed or injured, and millions of people have fled their homes since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.
