Russia announces readiness for Ukraine deal with U.S.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced Moscow's readiness to reach a peace agreement with the U.S. regarding Ukraine, CBS reports. However, he emphasized that some aspects of this agreement still need additional elaboration and revision.

"The U.S. president has not disclosed the exact terms and details of the agreement, so I will also refrain from discussing it now. Based on the U.S. president's statement, we are moving in the right direction. We are ready for an agreement, but certain aspects still require improvement," Lavrov said.

Lavrov also noted that contacts with the American side regarding the "situation in Ukraine" are ongoing.

According to the Russian Foreign Minister, U.S. President Donald Trump might be the only world leader who has recognized the root causes of the conflict. "President Trump described the attempt to involve Ukraine in NATO as a serious mistake. This mistake was made by the Biden administration, and now the U.S. is trying to rectify it," Lavrov emphasized.

According to Trump, there is already certain progress toward achieving a peace agreement regarding Ukraine. However, when asked by a CBS reporter, "Will Ukraine be forced to cede part of its territory to Russia for peace?" the U.S. president responded:

"It depends on which territory we are talking about... We will continue to work with Ukraine, but they have already lost many territories," Trump said. He also believes that the fact Russian forces have not occupied the entire territory of Ukraine could be considered a concession by Russia.

What is Ukraine's peace formula?

Ukraine demands the full withdrawal of Russian troops to the 1991 borders to end the war. This includes territories annexed by Russia in 2014 and 2022 – Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions. Ukraine also demands international security guarantees to prevent Russia from renewing attacks after peace is established. This includes deploying international peacekeeping forces in Ukraine. However, Moscow has ruled out negotiating based on the proposed Ukrainian "peace formula" and opposes the presence of foreign forces on Ukrainian territory.

What are Russia's conditions?

Russian President Vladimir Putin set forth several conditions for a ceasefire. Among these are the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk republics, and the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. Additionally, these four territories and the Crimean peninsula should be internationally recognized as part of Russia. Ukraine must abandon its NATO membership aspirations, and sanctions imposed against Russia must be lifted. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described these demands as an "unacceptable and unreliable ultimatum."

Currently, the international community calls for a diplomatic solution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. However, negotiations between the two sides have not yet yielded significant results. Read 'Zamin' on Telegram!