Just after a call between US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, and during a meeting between Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Kremlin’s diplomatic envoy to the US said that Kyiv should abandon all territorial claims to the Donbas.
Yuri Ushakov told reporters gathered in Florida that Ukraine should make the “brave decision” to pull out of the Donetsk region “without delay”.
After meeting with Zelensky, Trump said the two sides were “95 percent” of the way to a peace resolution to end Moscow’s nearly four-year invasion, but said that a few “thorny issues” remain. By that, he meant territorial concessions.
When pressed by Kyiv Post’s correspondent about Ushakov’s remarks at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, the US president punted, essentially referring questions of territorial issues to Moscow and Kyiv.
“That’s the issue they have to iron out,” Trump said, declining to say what pressure – if any – he would apply to Moscow if talks stall.
“We’ll see. I don’t want to talk about that because we’re getting very close,” he emphasized.
Ukraine’s departure from the fifth of the eastern Donetsk region in the Donbas still under its control is a key Russian demand for any agreement.
For his part, Zelensky said last week that Russia would have to withdraw his forces by a measure equivalent to ground ceded by Ukrainian troops. This essentially would result in a demilitarized zone around the present front lines.
“The Russian and US presidents share broadly similar views that the temporary ceasefire proposed by the Ukrainians and Europeans, under the pretext of preparing for a referendum or other pretexts, will only prolong the conflict and risk a resumption of hostilities,” Ushakov said after the Trump-Putin call said.
In light of this, the diplomatic advisor added, “it would make sense for [Kyiv] to make a decision regarding Donbas without delay.”
Russia has argued that a temporary halt to the fighting would allow Ukraine to regroup and rearm during that ceasefire.
Sunday’s call between Moscow and Washington had come at Trump’s initiative, Ushakov said, because the US president “wanted to discuss these questions before his meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky.”
According to Ushakov, Trump had told Putin he wanted an end to the war “as rapidly as possible” because this would open up a perspective of “impressive cooperation with Ukraine and Russia.”
Putin, meanwhile, had accepted the idea of creating two special working groups for the settlement of the conflict, one charged with security questions, and the other with economic aspects, the advisor said.
Ushakov said that Trump and Putin will speak again after the Florida talks.