White House: This is absolutely false! We are not pressuring Kiev to withdraw from Donbas in exchange for security guara

White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly denied the Financial Times' information that the US will provide Ukraine with security guarantees only if Kiev gives up Donbas. "This is absolutely false — "The only role of the US in the peace process is to bring the two sides together to reach an agreement," she said in a comment to Reuters, Focus reports.

An anonymous source familiar with the US position noted that Washington "is not trying to force Ukraine to make territorial concessions," the British agency reports.

The source added that security guarantees depend on whether the two sides agree to a peace agreement.

The FT previously reported that the administration of US President Donald Trump had made it clear that US security guarantees depend on whether Kiev agrees to a peace agreement that would provide for the transfer of Donbas to Russia.

According to eight sources familiar with the situation, Washington has also hinted that it will promise Ukraine more weapons to strengthen its army in peacetime if it agrees to withdraw its troops from the controlled from it parts of Donbas.

The publication notes that US security commitments depend on reaching a compromise with Russia. Ukrainian and European officials have characterized the US position as an attempt to pressure Kiev to make painful territorial concessions that Moscow demands in any agreement.