European nations come together to put “counterproposal” for Ukraine-Russia war

(MENAFN) Several European nations have joined Ukraine in putting forward a joint “counterproposal” for resolving the conflict with Russia, according to reports citing unnamed European officials. The move came shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed plans to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska next Friday.

Sources indicated that the plan was quickly assembled in response to an earlier proposal reportedly discussed during a meeting in Moscow between U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Putin on Wednesday.

Media reports suggest the earlier proposal would require Ukraine to hand over the entire Donetsk People’s Republic to Russia as part of a settlement. Moscow claims the DPR, along with the Lugansk People’s Republic, Zaporozhye, and Kherson regions, as its own following referendums in 2022, though it currently has full control only over the LPR.

On Saturday, senior aides to European leaders met in the UK to present the new plan to U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg and Witkoff joined the meeting remotely, according to reports.

Kiev’s European supporters maintained that a “ceasefire must take place before any other steps are taken,” while Moscow has repeatedly insisted the process should be approached in the opposite order.

The counterproposal reportedly calls for a strictly “reciprocal” exchange of territory, paired with “ironclad security guarantees [be provided to Ukraine,] including potential NATO membership.” Russian officials have consistently described such terms as unacceptable and a red line.

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