Russia views US President Donald Trump's 20-point plan for resolving the Ukrainian conflict as a starting point, not an end point, Bloomberg reported, citing an anonymous source close to the Kremlin.
„Moscow views the 20-point plan prepared by Ukraine and the United States as a starting point for further negotiations, as it lacks provisions important to Russia and does not answer many questions“, the agency writes.
The report specifies that this refers to the failure to provide guarantees to stop NATO's expansion to the east and to preserve Ukraine's neutral status after its accession to the European Union. Moscow is also unhappy with the plan’s lack of restrictions on the Ukrainian armed forces in peacetime (for example, on the possession of certain types of weapons) and the unclear status of the Russian language in Ukraine. Russia is also seeking clarity on the lifting of sanctions and the unfreezing of assets in Western countries.
According to a Bloomberg source, Russia considers the current version of the document to be “typically Ukrainian,” but continues to study it calmly.
“The Washington Post“ notes that the creation of a free economic zone in the DPR (if the Ukrainian armed forces withdraw from the controlled areas of the region) would require the deployment of foreign troops, something that Moscow will not agree to. However, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, this is exactly what the United States is insisting on.
“The deployment of foreign peacekeepers is possible. However, Russia has previously opposed the idea of deploying foreign troops in Ukraine. Both sides are likely to have difficulty agreeing on which countries could provide troops for such a mission,“ the newspaper wrote.
The publication calls the current version of the plan “a first step towards a compromise on the territorial issue“, but doubts that Moscow will accept it in its current form.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron, after meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, said on the social media platform X that discussions on security guarantees for Ukraine as part of the peace plan would not continue until January. Members of the “coalition of the willing“ will meet in Paris.
On December 24, Zelensky revealed all 20 points of Trump's plan to resolve the Ukrainian conflict. According to the RBC-Ukraine news agency, two of them remain the most problematic: territorial control and control over the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
Russia insists on the withdrawal of Ukrainian armed forces from the parts of the DPR controlled by Kiev, but Ukraine categorically refuses. Washington offers a compromise: the creation of a free economic zone on this territory, which would require a referendum in Ukraine.
In addition, the United States insists on the division of control over the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant between them, Russia and Ukraine. However, Kiev wants to distribute the operation of the plant solely between itself and the Americans.
The document also contains several clauses relating to the restoration of Ukraine, security guarantees, a mutual non-aggression agreement, elections and related issues. It proposes to secure Ukraine's nuclear-weapon-free status and guarantee its accession to the European Union "at a certain point in time."
A ceasefire could be declared after the parties agree on all the provisions of the agreement. According to the media, Kiev could submit the document for parliamentary ratification or a national referendum on its adoption.
Dmitry Novikov, first deputy chairman of the State Duma's International Affairs Committee, told Gazeta.Ru that this version of the plan is a manipulation by Kiev, since these clauses do not correspond to Russia's demands.
“When the parties really want to achieve peace, they do not pretend that Crimea and Donbass are not part of the Russian Federation. These facts are constitutionally enshrined. "Therefore, Zelensky's plan no longer seems ridiculous, but downright vulgar," the MP said.
According to him, such a document cannot even be seriously discussed.