(Reuters)
NEW YORK/WASHINGTON March 12 – Russia has presented the U.S. with a list of demands for a deal to end its war against Ukraine and reset relations with Washington, according to two people familiar with the matter.
It is not clear what exactly Moscow included on its list or whether it is willing to engage in peace talks with Kyiv prior to their acceptance. Russian and American officials discussed the terms during in-person and virtual conversations over the last three weeks, the people said.
They described the Kremlin’s terms as broad and similar to demands it previously has presented to Ukraine, the U.S. and NATO.
Those earlier terms included no NATO membership for Kyiv, an agreement not to deploy foreign troops in Ukraine and international recognition of President Vladimir Putin’s claim that Crimea and four provinces belong to Russia.
Russia, in recent years, also has demanded the U.S. and NATO address what it has called the “root causes” of the war, including NATO’s eastward expansion.
U.S. President Donald Trump is awaiting word from Putin on whether he will agree to a 30-day truce that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he would accept as a first step toward peace talks.
Putin’s commitment to a potential ceasefire agreement is still uncertain, with details yet to be finalized.
Some U.S. officials, lawmakers and experts fear that Putin, a former KGB officer, would use a truce to intensify what they say is an effort to divide the U.S., Ukraine and Europe and undermine any talks.
The Russian embassy in Washington and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
