Trump envoy Witkoff reveals key issues on potential Ukraine-Russia talks, control of occupied territories among them
US President Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff has revealed what Ukraine and Russia will discuss if direct talks between them manage to take place.
Source: Witkoff in an interview with Breitbart News, as reported by European Pravda
Details: Witkoff stated that among the key unresolved issues in the Russo-Ukrainian war, which will be discussed if the parties sit down at the negotiating table, are the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and Ukraine's access to key waterways.
Quote: "I think the major issues here are the regions, the nuclear plant, it's how the Ukrainians are able to use the Dnipro River and get out to the ocean. There are things here that I don't think are going to be difficult to solve if we get the parties to the table, they're talking to each other, we're narrowing issues between them, and then we're coming up with compromises and creative solutions to address each of their concerns."
Details: Witkoff believes the United States has done "a lot to narrow the issues" and he identified "five regions" as the main obstacle.
"The major sticking points are down to the five regions. Russia has control – overwhelming control – of two of those regions. The Ukrainians have some degree of control over three other regions, so it's about how we're going to assess – there's a difference between where the battle line are, where the troops are, and the administrative lines," he said.
Witkoff also noted that talks with both sides are already taking place in an informal format and the United States is insisting on the earliest possible organisation of a direct meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations.
Previously: On 17 April, Witkoff presented European officials in Paris aimed at ending the Russo-Ukrainian war. The proposal included the recognition of Russia's control over several Ukrainian territories currently under Moscow's occupation.
A key component of the proposal is the de jure recognition by the United States of Russia's control over Crimea, as well as its de facto control over Luhansk Oblast and parts of Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Kherson oblasts.
Under the US plan, Ukraine would regain control over the occupied parts of Kharkiv Oblast, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and the Kakhovka Dam. Ukraine would also gain control of the Kinburn Spit and unimpeded access to the Dnipro River.
Background:
In a nighttime statement on 11 May, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin did not mention a 30-day ceasefire but said he was ready for "direct talks" with Kyiv in Istanbul on Thursday 15 May.
In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he is ready to speak personally with Putin on Thursday in Istanbul, after which Trump stated that he does not rule out a visit to Türkiye on 15 May.
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