Russian Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov said on Monday that the Kremlin is aware of a European counterproposal to the recently leaked US-drafted plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine – but views it as “unconstructive.”
“Regarding the proposals circulating: this morning, we learned of a European plan that, at first glance, appears entirely unconstructive and unsuitable for us,” he told Russian state media outlet TASS.
On Wednesday, US and Ukrainian officials anonymously told Reuters, Axios and other outlets that the US had been secretly co-ordinating with Russia to draft a 28-point peace plan to end Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. US President Donald Trump had reportedly given President Volodymyr Zelensky until Nov. 27 to accept the deal.
The terms of the deal, which include Ukraine ceding its occupied territories, forswearing NATO membership, and limiting the size of its armed forces, would represent a near total capitulation to Russia.
In the days since, the reports have been confirmed by US officials and Ukraine and Europe have scrambled to rewrite the plans. Negotiations between US and Ukrainian delegations in Geneva on Sunday were described as “highly productive” in a joint statement.
Also on Sunday, Reuters leaked what it says is the full text of a European counter-proposal to the original US plan, drafted by Germany, Britain, and France with drastic revisions. For example, rather than the proposed limit of 600,000 on Ukraine’s armed forces, the European plan would limit the number of its personnel to “800,000 in peacetime.”
Unsurprisingly, the Kremlin (and by extension, Russia’s state media) does not look favorably on the proposed amendments. TASS reported on Monday that “the European troika [meaning group ... advocate for an armed force of 800,000 personnel during peacetime.”