US allies urge discussions between Trump and Putin, with Ukraine and Europe driving the call ahead of their meeting
In the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia, European leaders have presented a peace proposal that prioritizes Ukraine's sovereignty, participation, and a lawful peace without concessions to aggression. The proposal, which emphasises full participation of Ukraine's democratically elected leadership, rejects terms dictated or rewarded to Russia.
The proposal, which has been shared with US Vice President JD Vance, stresses the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity as fundamental. It asserts that rewarding Russian aggression would threaten European security. The proposal calls for an unconditional ceasefire before negotiations commence and rejects Russian peace terms seen as disingenuous attempts to prolong war.
European officials urge continued unified political, economic, military, and humanitarian support for Ukraine until a just and lasting peace aligned with international law and the will of the Ukrainian people is secured.
In contrast, Russian President Vladimir Putin has presented a counter-proposal that demands a complete handover of all annexed provinces, including areas not controlled by Russia. Putin also requires Ukraine's neutrality, abandoning plans to join NATO and nuclear non-proliferation, respect for Russian-speaking populations in Ukraine, lifting of sanctions on Russia, and "demilitarization and denazification" of Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a constructive meeting, stated that all arguments were heard. He emphasized that the path to peace for Ukraine should be determined together with Ukraine. Zelensky also made it clear that "clear steps are needed, as well as maximum coordination between us and our partners."
Fierce fighting continues along the more than 1,000km front line along eastern and southern Ukraine, where Russian forces hold around a fifth of the country's territory. Russian troops are slowly advancing, but their summer offensive has so far failed to achieve a major breakthrough, according to Ukrainian military analysts.
France's President Emmanuel Macron stated that Ukraine must play a role in any negotiations and that Europeans will be part of the solution as their own security is at stake. Macron's stance was echoed by other European leaders who have pushed back on proposals that they view as ceding too much to Putin.
Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, described the current peace push as "the first more or less realistic attempt to stop the war." However, the fundamental difference between the peace plans presented to the US and the Russian counter-proposal marks a deep divide.
One European negotiator said, "You can't start a process by ceding territory in the middle of fighting." Following Mr Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff's visit to Moscow, Ukraine's President Zelensky made a flurry of calls with Ukraine's allies. The potential deal could involve "some swapping of territories to the betterment of both" parties, but Kyiv and its European allies are wary of any move that might require Ukraine to surrender significant parts of its territory, a move that they believe would encourage Russian aggression.
References: [1] European proposals for Ukraine peace (undisclosed source) [2] Putin's counter-proposal for Ukraine (The Wall Street Journal, indirectly via a Wikipedia summary in the search results)
The European peace proposal, emphasizing Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, rejects any concessions to Russian aggression, suggesting that the reward of such aggression would threaten European security. In contrast, Russian President Vladimir Putin's counter-proposal demands a complete handover of annexed provinces, which European officials view as ceding too much territory during ongoing fighting.
