"Peace Agreement" in Trump and Putin Talks on Ukraine

SadaNews - In his conversation with Zelensky and European leaders, Trump offered to provide security guarantees for Ukraine inspired by NATO's treaty, but without joining NATO, according to informed sources.

The outlines of a potential "Peace Agreement" in Ukraine include territorial concessions and the provision of security guarantees for Kyiv, but without a ceasefire or the imposition of sanctions on Moscow at this stage.

After the talks, Trump stated in a post on his platform "Truth Social": "Everyone decided that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go straight to a peace agreement that would end the war, not just a ceasefire agreement that often does not hold," a position that contrasts with the desires of Ukraine and its allies.

This is seen as a victory for the Russian president, whose forces continue to advance in eastern Ukraine.

From the beginning, the Russian president has called for a more comprehensive "Peace Agreement" that addresses, as he claims, the "underlying causes" of the war, particularly Ukraine's desire to join NATO, which Moscow opposes as a threat to its existence and national security.

Ukraine fears that any potential agreement between Trump and Putin in Anchorage would force it to concede part of its territory.

Russian forces currently control about 20% of Ukrainian territory, in four regions in the south and east: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia, in addition to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.

While neither Putin nor Trump addressed this pressing issue directly during their press conference, an informed source on the phone conversations between the U.S. president and European leaders following the summit indicated that Trump supports a proposal put forth by Russia, which involves complete Russian control over the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and freezing hostilities along the frontline in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

Months into the war, Russia announced in September 2022 the annexation of the four regions, although its forces did not fully control any of them.

Russian forces currently control almost the entire Luhansk region and most of Donetsk, including their regional capitals.

However, this is not the case for Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, where the main cities still remain under Ukrainian control.

It remains unclear what the status of these territories will be for Ukraine and the international community, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky refuses any territorial concessions, asserting that such actions contradict his country’s constitution.

Ukraine, with the support of European allies, demands these guarantees in the event of a cessation of hostilities to prevent Russia from attacking again.

In his conversation with Zelensky and European leaders, Trump offered to provide security guarantees for Ukraine inspired by NATO's treaty, but without joining NATO, according to two informed sources.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni pointed out that to initiate this process, it is necessary to define a "collective security clause, allowing Ukraine to receive support from all its partners, including the United States, to be ready to act if it is attacked again."

European countries led by France and the United Kingdom have expressed their readiness to contribute to a "assurance" force deployed in Ukraine, but not on the front lines.

Trump confirmed that he would host Zelensky at the White House on Monday, in a meeting attended by several European leaders as well.

Trump had previously stated that "if things go well, we will set a date for a (trilateral) meeting with President Putin", emphasizing that reaching an agreement to end the war "truly depends on President Zelensky."

The latter expressed doubts on Sunday about Moscow's willingness to hold a trilateral summit or achieve lasting peace.

The deadline Trump set for Russia to end the war in Ukraine theoretically expired on Friday, under the threat of imposing "secondary" sanctions targeting countries that import products from Russia, particularly oil and weapons.

However, the U.S. president stated via "Fox News" after meeting his Russian counterpart that "given how things are going today, I don’t think I’ll be thinking about that now."

In contrast, European leaders confirmed that they "will continue to tighten sanctions and the specified economic measures to pressure the Russian war economy until a just and lasting peace is achieved."