Rutte says US peace plan has 'many good elements' but needs work
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (photo: Getty Images)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that the US peace plan aimed at ending the full-scale war in Ukraine contains "many good elements," but some of them need further work, he stated in an interview with Fox News.
"I don't want to go through the plan line-by-line, particularly because it is now under debate. As I said, many good elements in the plan … there are some elements which have to be improved," he said.
Rutte spoke positively about the discussions on the US peace plan held in Geneva on November 23.
"It was a very successful meeting between Ukraine and the US side, and they will take it forward," he said.
According to him, further discussions lie ahead regarding some aspects concerning the European Union and NATO. Rutte noted that these will be conducted separately.
The NATO Secretary General also commented on the timing of when Russian President Vladimir Putin might agree to the US plan. In Rutte's view, the Kremlin leader will face pressure from Russia's economic situation.
"Putin has now increased his taxes. And I know as a politician you only do that if there's absolutely no alternative left. So his doing this, which is a very unpopular measure, means that they are not in a good place," he explained.
US peace plan
Reputable media reported that the original plan consisted of 28 points, some of which were unacceptable to Ukraine.
To address the document, Ukrainian and American officials met in Geneva. Following the talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine's position had been heard.
Today, November 24, the Financial Times reported that the US peace plan had been cut by almost one-third. As a result, the document now contains 19 points instead of 28.
According to Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi, Ukraine and the United States agreed on an updated version of the peace plan. He emphasized that particularly sensitive issues will be discussed personally by Presidents Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump.
