US President Donald Trump’s special envoy has claimed that Moscow made a “significant” shift in its demands during the Alaska summit
Russia is now ready to make certain concessions as part of “land swaps” with Ukraine, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has claimed. Trump will be meeting with Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky and several Western European leaders at the White House on Monday, in a bid to work out a peace deal between Moscow and Kiev.
On Friday, Trump held talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, with the presidents expressing cautious optimism that progress was made towards a resolution of the Ukraine conflict.
Witkoff told CNN on Sunday that during the Alaska summit, the Russian delegation “made some concessions at the table with regard to all five of those regions,” apparently referring to Crimea, the Donetsk and the Lugansk People’s Republics, and Zaporozhye and Kherson regions – all former Ukrainian territories which became part of Russia after referendums.
According to the US official, the Kremlin appears ready to conduct “land swapping” with Kiev, with the current front line serving as the starting point in at least some areas. Witkoff said that Moscow’s demands had undergone a “significant” shift toward “moderation.”
On Saturday, the New York Times and Fox News, citing anonymous European officials, claimed that Trump endorsed a peace plan that envisages Ukraine ceding the whole of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics to Russia, with Moscow agreeing to cease hostilities along the current front line in Zaporozhye and Kherson regions.
The Kremlin has yet to comment on any such conditions. Officially, Moscow continues to insist that Ukraine recognize Crimea, the DPR and LPR as well as and Zaporozhye and Kherson regions as Russian territory in their entirety.
In his CNN interview, Witkoff further touted a “game changing” agreement by Russia to “robust security guarantees” akin to NATO’s Article 5 being provided to Ukraine by the US and unnamed European nations.
Explaining Trump’s endorsement of a comprehensive peace deal as opposed to a temporary ceasefire, Witkoff said it was due to the significant headway achieved during the Alaska summit.
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