US pressured Ukraine to give up part of Donbas, media report
Illustrative photo: US pressured Ukraine to give up part of Donbas (t.me/V_Zelenskiy_official)
During talks in Berlin, US negotiators pressured Ukraine to give up the part of Donbas currently under its control as a condition for a peace process with Russia, according to AFP, which in turn quoted The Guardian.
According to an outlet source, Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said there had been significant progress in the negotiations during a meeting attended by Jared Kushner, the US President’s son-in-law.
At the same time, the AFP source said the US position remains unchanged, with Washington insisting that Ukraine withdraw its troops from areas of Donbas under Kyiv's control. Ukraine has rejected the demand, insisting that any ceasefire must be achieved without prior territorial concessions to Russia.
"Putin wants territory," the official said, adding that US demands effectively align with Moscow's position. The source described Washington's position as "a bit striking."
Talks in Berlin
Earlier, the media reported that a meeting of European leaders, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was scheduled to take place in Berlin on December 15. The talks are expected to focus on a peace plan for Ukraine.
Ahead of the meeting, negotiations began in the German capital between a Ukrainian delegation led by Zelenskyy and US President's special envoy Steve Witkoff, along with Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law. The talks lasted more than five hours, after which Witkoff said that "a lot of progress was made."
On December 15, a second round of consultations between Ukrainian and US delegations began in Berlin on the US peace plan aimed at ending the war.
