The plan for a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia, based on the proposal of US President Donald Trump, is still being negotiated. The information that is now emerging, according to Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podoliak, cited by the French newspaper Le Monde, is that kyiv would accept the creation of a demilitarized zone in the Donbass region (east).
The idea of military neutrality on Ukrainian territory appears in the plan currently circulating between the two capitals. And kyiv would be close to accepting this scenario, Podoliak suggests. According to him, Russian and Ukrainian forces should withdraw from both sides of the current front line in the Donbass region. Moscow claims ownership of the entire region, although Russian troops have not occupied the entire area.
The Ukrainian negotiator even mentions “a foreign contingent” and “monitoring missions” to ensure compliance with this agreement. At The WorldPodoliak said “a demilitarized zone must exist on both sides of the line.”
“It will be necessary to legally define whether all types of weapons must be withdrawn or only heavy weapons. To avoid possible violations, representatives of observation missions and a foreign contingent must be present to guarantee compliance with the principles and agreements (…) This is a natural format for the end of the conflict, given that part of the territory will unfortunately remain under de facto Russian occupation and that, in any case, a separation line will be established,” believes Podoliak.
On Thursday (11), Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke about the various concessions demanded from his country to end the war. He mentioned the American proposal for a demilitarized zone, which could be described as a “free economic zone”, but did not accept this formula. According to the Ukrainian president, “a referendum” or “an election” will be necessary for his country to decide on territorial questions.
The idea of a demilitarized zone in the territories that Russia has failed to conquer in nearly four years of intense fighting would represent a major concession on the part of kyiv, which would however avoid formally renouncing its demands.
“The United States does not know who will govern this territory, which they (the North Americans) already call a ‘free economic zone’ or a ‘demilitarized zone,'” Zelensky argued.
Pressure and frustration from the North American side
Among the mediators in the conflict, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly demonstrated in recent days his impatience and frustration at the lack of results in the negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. Washington is pressuring kyiv to accept territorial concessions that could include a demilitarized zone.
“The president is extremely frustrated with both parties involved in this war and he is fed up with meetings that serve no purpose other than to hold meetings (…) He no longer wants words, he wants actions. He wants this war to end,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the press on Thursday evening (11).
The Europeans, who form the “coalition of willing allies” gathered around kyiv, are trying to influence the negotiations, but can only react defensively, as geopolitical analyst Ulrich Bounat points out at RFI.
“They always correct what Donald Trump does. I think this is due to two aspects: the first is that the security of Europe, like it or not, is still not strategically autonomous from the European side and therefore cannot fall out with a former ally which has become ‘a politically hostile power’. Therefore, they are trying to avoid at all costs the scenario in which Donald Trump would say: ‘Okay, look, Ukraine, I’m fed up, sort this out without me'”, estimates the analyst.
“The Europeans therefore find themselves between a rock and a hard place. I mean in the sense that they need to obtain a series of guarantees and aid for Ukraine and for the security of Europe. This supposes not falling out with Donald Trump. But, on the other hand, Trump’s positions are clearly contrary to the interests of Europe,” he believes.
“Next week will be decisive” for Ukraine, underlined the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. In addition to discussions on a solution to the conflict, the coming days will be marked by a summit of European leaders on December 18, where the possible use of Russian assets frozen in Europe to help Ukraine will be discussed.
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