(Berlin) The President of the United States, Donald Trump, supports a plan aimed at putting an end to the war in Ukraine by giving up territories that they did not conquer the Russian invaders, he told European leaders after his meeting with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, in Alaska, according to two senior European officials who were informed of this call.
Trump will discuss this plan with the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday at the White House. Discussions took place on Saturday to find out if other European officials would join him, said these officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private talks.
After meeting with the Russian president, Trump renounced to demand an immediate cease-fire in Ukraine and considers that a rapid peace treaty can be negotiated, provided that Mr. Zelensky agrees to yield the rest of the Donbass region to Russia, including areas that are not occupied by Russian troops.
Mr. Zelensky and European leaders firmly opposed such a concession of land not occupied by Russian troops. These territories also contain important Ukrainian lines of defense and are rich in minerals. Ukrainian officials declared that a final agreement could only imply Kyiv agree to permanently yield a Ukrainian sovereign territory, which would violate the Ukrainian Constitution.
Written promise
In exchange for these territories, President Putin proposed a ceasefire in the rest of Ukraine by keeping the current front lines and a written promise not to attack Ukraine or any other European country, said these senior officials, who pointed out to Mr. Trump that his Russian counterpart had often broken his written commitments.
It will be up to Ukraine to make decisions concerning its territory, have stressed the officials, adding that international borders should not be modified by force.
During the call with European leaders, Trump did not mention the imposition of new sanctions or economic pressures against Russia, officials said. But European leaders have stressed that they would maintain sanctions and economic pressures on Russia until the killings cease, said an official.
The White House did not respond to a request for comments.
Security guarantees
On a more positive note, according to European officials, Trump said that Putin had accepted that Ukraine benefits from solid security guarantees after an agreement, but not within the framework of NATO. American troops could participate, Trump told Europeans.
Putin has also requested guarantees for Russian to become an official language in Ukraine and for the safety of Russian Orthodox churches, officials said.
Trump said he hoped to get a trilateral meeting with MM. Putin and Zelensky said officials. But Putin has so far refused to meet Zelensky, considering him as an illegitimate president of an artificial country.
This article was published in the New York Times.
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