Moscow has dismissed proposals linked to incoming President Donald Trump to end the war it started in Ukraine.
The comments by Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, mark the second time in several days that Moscow has appeared to pour water on the prospect that a new U.S. president will usher an end to hostilities.
Newsweek has contacted the Trump transition team for comment by email.
Why It Matters
Trump has repeatedly said he could end the war in Ukraine within a day, however, Moscow appears to have initially rejected unconfirmed plans linked to Trump, raising the prospect of no immediate end in sight to the war in Ukraine.
What To Know
Russian ambassador to the UN Vasily Nebenzya told the state-controlled Russia 1 channel on Friday that the Trump team had not presented any “interesting” plan about the war in Ukraine.
The Wall Street Journal had reported Trump’s plan could include delaying Kyiv’s NATO membership by 20 years in exchange for continued arms supplies from the West and European peacekeepers to monitor a ceasefire.
While this has not been confirmed and speculation about the Trump team’s plans will continue ahead of the president-elect entering the White House on January 20, Moscow looks like it has little time for what has been reportedly presented so far.
“President (Vladimir) Putin last outlined our conditions for ending the conflict on December 19,” Nebenzya said, according to the Kyiv Independent. “So far, nothing from the incoming U.S. administration suggests anything of interest to us.”
This refers to Putin’s comments last month that he was willing to engage in dialogue with Trump but reiterated Moscow’s demands which include fully occupying four Ukrainian regions—Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson rejecting of Ukraine’s NATO membership.
Nebenzya reiterated Moscow’s unhappiness with proposed Trump plans expressed by foreign minister Sergei Lavrov who said on December 29 that “we are certainly not satisfied with the proposals” of Trump’s representatives.
Lavrov said the proposal outlined in leaks and Trump’s Time magazine interview suggested “freezing hostilities” as well as “transferring the responsibility of confronting Russia to Europe.”
Nebenzya also said he had received “signals of agreements” from Ukraine and its president, Volodymr Zelensky, although he rejected them as unserious.
What People Are Saying
Russian UN envoy, Vasily Nebenzya, on January 3: “Nothing from the incoming U.S. administration suggests anything of interest to us.”
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on December 29: “We are certainly not satisfied with the proposals sounding on behalf of representatives of the president-elect’s team.”
Konstantin Sonin, professor at Chicago University’s Harris School of Public Policy, told Newsweek: “It’s not clear that Russia is open to any kind of negotiations over its goals like to fully subjugate Ukraine.”
What Happens Next
The war enters its fourth year on February 24 and Putin’s recent comments that Moscow intends to end the war with a front-line success suggests he has no intention of making concessions for peace.
Meanwhile, Lavrov has also rejected the possibility of a ceasefire, saying that that a truce would be a “road to nowhere.”
It adds to anticipation over what leverage Trump might seek to exert over Putin if the incoming U.S. president is to make good on his pledge he can end the war quickly.
Konstantin Sonin, professor at Chicago University’s Harris School of Public Policy, said the Trump administration will make a “good faith effort” to push for a cease-fire but the issue is it has more leverage over Zelensky than over Putin.
“Zelensky is not a big issue—the issue is Putin and it’s not clear that Putin will respond to the Trump suggestion,” he told Newsweek.
“So for now, it’s not clear that Russia is open to any kind of negotiations over its goals like to fully subjugate Ukraine,” he told Newsweek.
The post Russia Dismisses Donald Trump Peace Plan: ‘Nothing of Interest’ appeared first on Newsweek.
