Washington Post details US proposal for Ukraine, including recognition of Crimea as Russian

The United States will present a proposal to recognize Russia's annexation of Crimea and freeze the fighting zone as part of a peace deal during talks in London aimed at discussing steps toward a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war.

The sources said Washington Post that US proposals presented to Ukraine in Paris last week include Washington's formal recognition of annexed Crimea as Russian territory and the lifting of sanctions against Russia as part of a future agreement.

In return, the US believes that Moscow should cease military operations in Ukraine, writes the Washington Post.

An unidentified adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that the US proposals contain some ideas that Kiev agrees with, and others that it does not.

A Western official described the amount of pressure on Ukraine by the US as "extraordinary", the Telegraph reports.

A US State Department spokesman denied that Washington was presenting Kiev with a fait accompli. However, the article notes that the Trump administration's growing dissatisfaction with the pace of negotiations has Kiev fearing a new turn in relations with Washington.

Envoys from France, Britain and Germany are expected to insist that any deal include security guarantees and post-war recovery programs, perhaps partly funded by proceeds from frozen Russian assets.

Privately, European and Ukrainian officials have acknowledged that Kiev is unlikely to regain control of Russian-held territory anytime soon.

At best, they aim to delay any peace agreement that would allow Moscow to retain the land it has occupied, ensuring an end to sanctions.

Last week, during talks in Paris, the United States presented Ukraine with a summary of its proposals, which Ukrainians viewed as Washington's final effort before considering abandoning the peace process, according to two sources.

The US proposal in Paris, which includes recognizing Crimea as Russian, follows a visit by Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, to Moscow this month, where he held a several-hour meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

A person briefed on the proposal described it as “Witkoff’s idea” for the United States to recognize Crimea as Russian, “without forcing Ukraine to recognize it.”

The US State Department declined to comment on the specific proposals presented to the negotiators.

"The only document shared in Paris was a list of possible options for discussion and feedback," an official said.

In recent weeks, European leaders have been more actively involved in peace talks, marking an improvement over the Trump team's initial discussions with the Russians in Saudi Arabia, which did not even include the Ukrainians.

Now, London and other allies will look for ways to use their influence in favor of Ukraine.

As WP notes, Europe has several levers, including billions in seized or frozen Russian assets that could be returned or used to finance post-war recovery programs. /Telegraph/