Politico: Americans insist Ukraine should leave Donbas

The United States insists that Ukraine should withdraw from Donbas as part of a deal to resolve the war. This was reported by the newspaper Politico with reference to an unnamed European official.

The article states that peace talks between the US and Ukraine have reached a deadlock over one main issue: how to force Ukraine to give up what the Kremlin failed to capture during the war – the entire territory of Donbas.

"On the territorial issue, the Americans are acting simply: Russia is demanding that Ukraine give up its territories, and the Americans are constantly thinking about how to achieve this," a senior European official familiar with the negotiations told the publication.

"The Americans insist that Ukraine leave Donbas... one way or another," the source added.

Ukraine insists that any peace agreement must include a freeze on hostilities on the current front line. Currently, about 30% of Donbas is still controlled by Kyiv.

The European official said that, in general, the most realistic option is to "stay where you are."

The United States continues to put pressure on Ukraine to quickly agree to a deal, and US President Donald Trump is again visibly disappointed with Kyiv. Journalists reminded him of his accusations against the president Volodymyr Zelenskyywhich allegedly not familiarized with a "peace plan".

"Maybe Trump wants it to happen quickly, and his team has to explain to him why they are not the ones who are at fault for not making it happen as quickly as he wanted," he continued.

"It's important how America will act – as a mediator or by leaning toward Russia?" the source summarized.

• On December 2, NATO stated that the capture of that part of The Donetsk region, which is controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, has not been real for Russians for at least a year.
• On December 8, Zelenskyy said about the lack of common ground of the negotiators on Donbas.