Russia demands guarantees that after the war Russian will become official in Ukraine, and the Russian Orthodox Church will be able to operate freely on Ukrainian territory. This is written by The New York Times (NYT) citing two European officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Sources, in particular, recount the contents of a telephone conversation that the US President Donald Trump spent with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders after meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Thus, according to Trump, who in turn is quoted by the NYT interlocutors, Putin demands that all of Donbas be handed over to Russia. In exchange for this, Putin will agree to cease hostilities in the remaining Ukrainian territories, freezing the current front line. Putin will also give a written promise not to attack Ukraine or any other European country again.
Putin also apparently agreed that Ukraine should receive strong security guarantees after the war, but not within the framework of NATO.
According to the NYT's interlocutors, Putin also asked for guarantees that the Russian language would receive official status in Ukraine and that the Russian Orthodox Church would be able to operate safely in Ukrainian-controlled territory.
It is also reported that despite Trump's hopes to hold a trilateral meeting between the leaders of the US, Ukraine, and Russia, Putin continues to refuse it because he considers Volodymyr Zelenskyy to be the illegitimate president of an artificial country.
Trump-Putin meeting: latest news
As UNIAN reported, during a conversation with Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders, Donald Trump said he supports Putin's demand to transfer the entire territory of Donbass under Russian control. In his opinion, this will allow a quick end to the war.
We also wrote that the Western press in general is very negatively assessed Trump's meeting with Putin Observers emphasize that Putin once again received a reprieve from new US sanctions without making any concessions in return.
