The United States said Friday it had made “significant progress” in diplomatic negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, but acknowledged that the most difficult impasses remained. In a conversation with reporters, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the White House had spent “an enormous amount of time and energy” determining how much kyiv and Moscow would be willing to give in, noting that “the most difficult questions are usually left until last.” According to him, a possible agreement will require concessions from both parties and the final decision will rest exclusively with Ukraine. These statements come as the Ukrainian, American and European delegations begin a new round of consultations in the United States, looking for points of convergence to end the conflict.
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— (We want) to identify the positions of the two parties and see if we can bring them to an agreement — he said. — A negotiated agreement requires two things: that both parties get something in return and that both parties give up something. And we are trying to understand what Russia can offer and what it expects to receive? What can Ukraine offer and what does it hope to receive? Ultimately, the decision will be up to Ukraine, not Russia or the United States.
He added that “it is not a question of imposing an agreement on anyone”, but rather of trying to find points of convergence of interests.
— I think we’ve made progress, but we still have a long way to go and, obviously, the hardest questions are always the last.
Ukrainian negotiators and their European allies will hold another meeting with American officials in the United States to discuss ending the war with Russia, Ukraine’s top negotiator, Rustem Umerov, said.
“Today in the United States, together with Lieutenant General Andriy Gnatov, we will begin a new round of consultations with the American side. At the invitation of the United States, European partners are also participating in this format,” Umerov said on social media.
Financing of 585 billion reais
European leaders approved in the early hours of Friday a loan of 90 billion euros (about 585 billion reais) to finance Ukraine’s war efforts for the next two years, but without resorting to frozen Russian assets on the continent to guarantee the loan – which, although it was treated as a first option by the bloc’s influential countries, did not find consensus among the majority. The amount is equivalent to two-thirds of the 137 billion euros (887 billion reais) in necessary spending estimated by kyiv to maintain its activities in the face of the conflict with Moscow.
European leaders met in Brussels on Thursday to confirm their support for Ukraine, with two proposals on the table. The most controversial of these concerned the use of Russian Central Bank assets, frozen on the continent, to finance Ukraine – most of the 210 billion euros (1.3 trillion reais) are in the custody of Belgium-based Euroclear. A traditional loan was also being evaluated, and was eventually confirmed.
The agreement amounts to an interest-free loan, according to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. The amount is guaranteed by the EU budget and kyiv will only have to repay it if Russia pays war compensation. The operation will be carried out by 24 member countries of the bloc, with the exception of Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, which are reluctant to support Ukraine.
“We have reached an agreement. The decision to grant aid of 90 billion euros to Ukraine for 2026-2027 has been approved,” wrote the President of the European Council, António Costa, on the social network
— Guarantee 90 billion euros to another country for the next two years. I don’t think we have ever seen this in our history — said Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, whose country holds the presidency of the EU Council until the end of the year.
While EU heads of state, government and bodies described the loan decision as a victory and a show of force, interlocutors in Moscow and international analysts saw the lack of agreement on the use of Russian assets as a show of division, which would demonstrate the EU’s indecision at a crucial moment.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever expressed relief after the final decision. The leader of the country that actually owns Russian assets has spoken out against this use, citing the possibility of sanctions against the country’s financial system. Throughout the negotiations, Brussels’ proposal was that European allies share risks equally.
— The decision is made, everyone is relieved — celebrated De Wever on Friday at the end of the meeting.
In a post on Telegram, Russia’s chief economic negotiator, Kirill Dmitriev, celebrated the failure of the option to “illegally use Russian assets to finance Ukraine,” adding that “law and common sense have won a victory.”
Even if it does not immediately plan to use Russian assets, the European Union announced that it still reserves the right to use the frozen values in the long term. Last week, European countries took steps to freeze their reserves indefinitely. Amid peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, mediated by the United States, the European bloc is trying to demonstrate that it is a powerful player on the world stage.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said after the loan was finalized that the move was “a clear message” to Russian President Vladimir Putin “to end the war.” French President Emmanuel Macron said that once funding is secured, “it will be useful to speak with Vladimir Putin again.”
Under U.S. pressure to agree to cede territory and end the war even with a deal he disagrees with, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky celebrated the loan approval as a success. He underlined the signal sent by European allies.
“This is an important support that really strengthens our resilience,” the Ukrainian leader wrote on the social network (With the New York Times and AFP)
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