US, Ukraine reach consensus on key issues aimed at ending war

Kyiv: The United States and Ukraine have reached a consensus on several critical issues aimed at bringing an end to the nearly four-year conflict, but sensitive issues around territorial control in Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland, along with the management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, remain unresolved, Ukraine’s president said.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke as the US showed the 20-point plan, hammered out after marathon talks in Florida in recent days, to Russian negotiators. ]

A response is expected from Moscow on Wednesday, Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian president briefed journalists on each point of the plan on Tuesday. His comments were embargoed until Wednesday morning.

The draft proposal, which reflects Ukraine’s wishes, intertwines political and commercial interests to safeguard security while boosting economic potential.

At the heart of the negotiations lies the contentious territorial dispute concerning the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, known as the Donbas. This is “the most difficult point,” Zelenskyy said. He said these matters will be discussed at the leaders’ level.

Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donbas that it has not captured — an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70 per cent of Donetsk.

In a bid to facilitate compromise, the United States has proposed transforming these areas into free economic zones.

Ukraine insists that any arrangement must be contingent upon a referendum, allowing the Ukrainian people to determine their own fate.

Ukraine is demanding the demilitarisation of the area and the presence of an international force to ensure stability, Zelenskyy said.

How the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest plant in Europe, which is under Russian occupation, will be managed is another contentious issue.