The United States and Russia have allegedly already discussed a model to end the war in Ukraine.
The model, based on Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, would give Russia control over the occupied areas in Ukraine, The Times reported.
The proposal could be part of talks between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.
Highlights
- The U.S. and Russia reportedly discussed a West Bank-style model giving Russia control over occupied Ukrainian areas without changing borders.
- Ukraine's President Zelenskyy firmly rejected any land handover, insisting on constitutional approval and full Ukrainian involvement in talks.
- The White House denied the occupation plan claims, calling the reports fake news and discrediting The Times’ sources.
The U.S. and Russia have allegedly discussed a model similar to the West Bank to end the war in Ukraine
Image credits: Kremlin Press Office/Getty Images
Under the plan, Russia would have both military and economic control over parts of Ukraine it occupies, but Ukraine’s official borders would not change.
A source close to the U.S. National Security Council told The Times, “It’ll just be like Israel occupies the West Bank. 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.”
According to The Times, the idea was discussed in recent weeks between Russian officials and Steve Witkoff, Trump’s envoy for peace talks.
Witkoff, who also works on Middle East negotiations, is understood to support the idea.
Image credits: Elmurod Usubaliev/Getty Images
According to the source, the proposal could bypass Ukraine’s constitutional rule that no territory can be ceded without holding an “all-Ukraine” referendum.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected any plan to hand over Ukrainian land.
Speaking to reporters this week, he said, “Any issue which deals with the territorial integrity of Ukraine cannot be discussed just like that, without looking at our Constitution and the will of our people. Without Ukraine at the table, it’s impossible to achieve.”
He added that a ceasefire should come first, followed by security guarantees, and that Russia should face new sanctions if no ceasefire deal is made in Alaska.
On Monday, Trump told reporters outside the White House, “I was a little bothered by the fact that Zelenskyy was saying, ‘Well, I have to get constitutional approval,’ he’s got approval to go into war and kill everybody, but he needs approval to do a land swap, because there’ll be some land-swapping going on.”
Zelenskyy has rejected any plan to hand over Ukrainian territory
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The White House has denied that such an occupation plan is being considered.
Deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said, “This is total fake news and sloppy reporting by The Times, who clearly has terrible sources. Nothing of the sort was discussed with anyone at any point.”
The ‘West Bank model’ refers to Israel’s control of the territory it took from Jordan in 1967. The International Court of Justice has ruled the occupation illegal, though the U.S. does not recognize the court’s authority.
In the West Bank, Israel keeps overall control, even though the Palestinian Authority governs most towns and cities. Israeli citizens in the area live under Israeli law, while Palestinians face military law and cannot vote in Israeli national elections.
More than 150 settlements have been built in the territory in breach of international law.
Sebastian Gorka, Trump’s senior director for counterterrorism, told Politico in May: “We recognize the reality on the ground. Number one, that’s the beginning because we’re not utopianists and we’re not human engineers.”
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“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.”
On Wednesday, Trump met with Zelenskyy and European leaders in a virtual meeting, where Trump reassured them that he does not intend to discuss any Ukrainian divisions with Putin.
Trump said that he would immediately organize a three-way summit with Putin and Zelenskyy, but also warned that he was getting impatient with Putin.
“There may be no second meeting because, if I feel that it’s not appropriate to have it because I didn’t get the answers that we have to have, then we are not going to have a second meeting,” Trump told reporters, saying Putin would face “severe consequences” if Russia did not halt its offensive.
Russia has been trying to seize more ground ahead of the Alaska summit
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In London on Thursday, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer welcomed Zelenskyy to 10 Downing Street. Starmer said the “coalition of the willing” was ready to implement military plans for a post-war Ukraine once a peace deal is reached.
Russia has been trying to seize more ground ahead of the Alaska summit, with Ukrainian forces reporting new Russian advances in Donetsk.
Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Merezhko, who chairs the country’s foreign affairs committee, said the best outcome of the talks might be no deal at all.
“Ideally, the best scenario for us is of course when Mr. Trump finally realizes that he cannot deal with Putin,” he said on BBC Radio 4.
“That Putin is the only obstacle to peace and [Mr. Trump] will follow through on his numerous promises to implement sanctions, including secondary sanctions.”