Russia gives demands for talks with US on Ukraine deal: Report

Photo : AP

Russia has given the United States a list of things it wants for stopping the war in Ukraine and fixing its ties with America. Two people who know about this have shared the information. But it is not clear what Russia has written in its list or if it will talk with Ukraine before the list is accepted.

For the past three weeks, U.S. and Russian officials have talked about these things in meetings and online calls. People say Russia’s demands are like what it has already asked from Ukraine, the U.S., and NATO before. Some of these demands include stopping Ukraine from joining NATO, keeping foreign soldiers out of Ukraine, and making other countries agree that Crimea and four more areas belong to Russia.

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Russia has also asked the U.S. and NATO to solve what it calls the “real reasons” for the war. Russia believes that NATO moving closer to its borders is a big problem.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump is waiting for Russian President Vladimir Putin to say if he will agree to a 30-day pause in the war. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has already said he is ready to accept this as the first step toward peace talks. But it is still not clear if Putin will agree to stop the war for some time. The details of this plan are still being discussed.

Some people in the U.S. think that Putin might use this break in fighting to make Ukraine and its friends weaker. They believe that instead of really wanting peace, he might try to get stronger and continue the war later.

The Russian Embassy in Washington and the White House have not given any answers about this topic yet. In Ukraine, President Zelenskiy has called a recent meeting with U.S. officials in Saudi Arabia a good step. He also said that a short pause in the war could help start bigger talks for peace.

Russia has been making similar demands for about 20 years. Some of these demands have been part of talks with the U.S. and European countries before. Russia also talked about these points with the Biden administration in late 2021 and early 2022. At that time, Russian troops were already waiting at Ukraine’s border, ready to attack.

One of Russia’s big demands is to limit U.S. and NATO military actions from Eastern Europe to Central Asia. The Biden administration did not agree to some of these demands but still tried to talk with Russia to avoid war. However, this did not work, and Russia attacked Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

In recent weeks, U.S. and Russian officials have said that an old peace plan from 2022 might be used again to start talks. This plan was discussed in Istanbul, but no final decision was made at that time.

In the 2022 talks, Russia wanted Ukraine to forget about joining NATO and stay a country without nuclear weapons forever. Russia also wanted to stop other countries from helping Ukraine if war happened again.

The Trump administration has not explained how it is talking with Russia. There are two different discussions going on—one about fixing U.S.-Russia relations and the other about stopping the war in Ukraine.

Inside the Trump team, people have different ideas. U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who is helping in the talks, has said that the 2022 Istanbul talks were helpful and could be used again to make peace. But retired General Keith Kellogg, who also works on Ukraine and Russia matters, does not agree. He thinks a new plan should be made instead of using old ideas.

Experts say Russia’s demands are not just about Ukraine. They also want to make new rules with the West. Some believe that if Russia gets what it wants, it could become stronger in Europe and limit the power of the U.S. and its allies.

Angela Stent, a former top U.S. intelligence expert on Russia, said there is no sign that Moscow is ready to change its position. She said that Russia’s demands have stayed the same, which means it may not really want peace or a real pause in the war.

For many years, Russia has been asking the U.S. and NATO to stop their military actions in certain areas. Before the invasion, the Biden administration tried to talk with Russia about some of these topics. Russia wanted a ban on NATO military exercises in Eastern Europe, no U.S. missiles in Europe, and fewer NATO activities in some regions.

According to former U.S. officials, these demands have been the same since World War II. Kori Schake, a former U.S. defense official, said that recent actions by the Trump administration have worried Europe. She said European countries are now afraid that the U.S. is not just stepping away from helping them but may even be moving closer to Russia’s side.