The United States and Ukraine have reached a consensus on several critical issues aimed at bringing an end to the nearly four-year conflict, Ukraine's president says.
But sensitive issues remain unresolved around territorial control in Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned, along with the management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
Zelenskiy spoke as the US showed the 20-point plan, hammered out after marathon talks in Florida in recent days, to Russian negotiators. A response is expected from Moscow on Wednesday, Zelenskiy said.
The Ukrainian president briefed journalists on each point of the plan on Tuesday with his comments embargoed until Wednesday morning. The draft proposal, which reflects Ukraine's wishes, intertwines political and commercial interests to safeguard security while boosting economic potential.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been briefed by envoy Kirill Dmitriev and Moscow will now formulate its position, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to be drawn on Russia's reaction to the proposals, or the exact format of the documents, saying the Kremlin was not going to communicate via the media on such issues.
At the heart of the negotiations lies the contentious territorial dispute concerning the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, known as the Donbas. This is "the most difficult point" Zelenskiy said. He said these matters will be discussed at the leaders level.
Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donesk that it has not captured - an ultimatum that Ukraine has rejected. Russia has captured most of Luhansk and about 70 per cent of Donetsk.
In a bid to facilitate compromise, the US has proposed transforming these areas into free economic zones. Ukraine insists any arrangement must be contingent upon a referendum, allowing the Ukrainian people to determine their own fate.
Ukraine is demanding the demilitarisation of the area and the presence of an international force to ensure stability, Zelenskiy said.
Another contentious issue is how the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest plant in Europe which is under Russian occupation, will be managed. The US proposes a consortium with Ukraine and Russia, with each party having an equal stake in the enterprise.
But Zelenskiy countered with a joint venture proposal between the US and Ukraine, in which the Americans are able to decide how to distribute their share, presuming it would go to Russia.
"We did not reach a consensus with the American side on the territory of the Donetsk region and on the ZNPP," Zelenskiy said, referring to the power plant in Zaporizhzhia.
"But we have significantly brought most of the positions closer together. In principle, all other consensus in this agreement has been found between us and them."
with Reuters