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Can Russia occupy parts of Ukraine the way Israel occupies West Bank?
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes US President Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting in Moscow, Russia. The proposal was said to be made in meeting between Witoff and Russian officials. Reuters
Is Russia planning to emulate Israel's plan in the West Bank?
There are reports that Russia has proposed doing so to the United States in a meeting between US envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian representatives.
The report comes ahead of the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
It also comes after Trump held a call with several European leaders including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who will not take part in the summit.
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But what do we know about the proposal?
Let's take a closer look:
What we know about proposal
Russia's proposal mirrors Israel's plan in the West Bank.
Moscow under this scheme would take military and economic control of areas it has occupied in Ukraine.
However, these areas would be run by a separate governing body.
'The answer to Ukraine's territorial question is already in the constitution of Ukraine,' the Ukrainian president said in a Saturday video statement on Telegram. 'Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier.'
However, such a plan would theoretically allow Ukraine to retain its formal sovereignty – thereby providing a legal workaround to Ukraine's Constitution, which mandates holding a national referendum when it comes to ceding territory.
Witkoff, who is also Trump's envoy to West Asia, is said to back this plan.
Thus far, Trump has been focused on a 'land swap' as a way of resolving the war – on which he has received pushback from Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy and European leaders.
'It'll just be like Israel occupies the West Bank,' an unnamed source with ties to the US National Security Council (NSC) told The Times.
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'With a governor, with an economic situation that goes into Russia, not Ukraine. But it'll still be Ukraine, because … Ukraine will never give up its sovereignty. But the reality is it'll be occupied territory and the model is Palestine,' the source added.
It remains unclear if the plan calls for Ukraine to get back the territory at some point.
The Trump administration has decried this report as fake news.
'This is total fake news and sloppy reporting by The Times, which clearly has terrible sources. Nothing of the sort was discussed with anyone at any point,' White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has previously said that there is no question of Ukraine handing over its territory to Russia.
However, their previous words point to something else entirely.
The Trump administration has repeatedly said that Ukraine expecting to get back its land from Russia is 'unrealistic'.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth in February said, 'We must start by recognising that returning to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective. Chasing this illusionary goal will only prolong the war and cause more suffering'.
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In May, US Senior Director for Counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka, said 'the Trump administration lives in the real world.'
'We recognise the reality on the ground,' he added. 'No. 1, that's the beginning because we're not utopianists and we're not human engineers. We're not some kind of pie-in-the-sky believers in utopia.'
'We recognize the reality on the ground and we have one priority above all else, whether it's the Middle East or whether it's Ukraine. It's to stop the bloodshed. Everything else comes after the bloodshed has been halted.'
However, European leaders have repeatedly said that Ukraine needs to be part of any peace process and no talks about land being handed over can occur for a ceasefire without Kyiv.
A number of European leaders during the call yesterday with Trump and Zelenskyy said the goal was to get a ceasefire between Russia and the Ukraine. They said the ceasefire is simply a first step and that Ukraine needs to play any part in a peace deal. They also said Europe's concerns must be taken into account.
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'We have made it clear that Ukraine will be at the table as soon as there is a follow-up meeting,' German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters in Berlin alongside Zelenskyy. ' President Trump wants to make a ceasefire a priority,' he added.
Any territorial exchange in Ukraine 'must only be discussed with Ukraine', French President Macron added after the call.
'Trump was very clear on the fact that the US wants to obtain a ceasefire at this meeting in Alaska,' Macron said. 'We must continue to support Ukraine, and when I say 'we', I mean Europeans and Americans,' he added.
'We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force,' the leaders said in a statement on Saturday.
'The current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations.'
The West Bank
Israel seized the West Bank from Jordan during the 1967 war – also known as the Six- Day War when it fought and defeated its neighbours Egypt, Syria, and Jordan.
The land lies to Israel's east – on the West Bank of the River Jordan from which it gets its name – spans 5,628 square kilometres.
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It is surrounded by Israel to its north, west and south. It also borders Jerusalem – which houses sites sacred to Muslims, Christians and Jews and is a flashpoint for internal violence.
While the West Bank is home to millions of Palestinians, it is also home to nearly half a million Israeli Jews.
Israel over the years has built 'settlements' on the West Bank. Many of these have sprung up under the Benjamin Netanyahu regime, which has made their construction 'a priority'.
Israel seized the West Bank from Jordan during the 1967 war – also known as the Six- Day War when it fought and defeated its neighbours Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. AFP
However, the settlements remain illegal under international law. Even the United States, a staunch ally of Israel, does not recognise the legality of these settlements.
The International Court of Justice ruled in July that the occupation of the West Bank was illegal and said that it violated Palestinians' right to self-determination. It said Israeli policy in the territories constituted 'systemic discrimination' based on religion, race or ethnic origin, and that Israel had already effectively annexed large parts of the territory.
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With inputs from agencies
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