Jared Kushner calls for direct Russia-Europe security talks
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on L’essentiel and Daily Maverick
Jared Kushner, US negotiator and Donald Trump’s son-in-law, says Russia and Europe should hold direct talks on security arrangements as part of a peace deal in Ukraine. The statement comes ahead of talks between Moscow, Kyiv and Washington scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in Abu Dhabi, reports Daily Maverick.
Security guarantees for Ukraine must be among the main subjects of the discussions, including the possibility of a defence arrangement inspired by Article 5 of NATO, according to a US official. The negotiations must also address the post-war security architecture before any discussion of a territorial agreement.
Russia and Ukraine remain opposed on territorial issues, but both sides are privately showing some openness to a compromise, the official said. Kyiv wants a return to the original borders with Russia, while Vladimir Putin is demanding the whole of Donbas. Any territorial agreement should come at the end of the negotiations, after the other issues.
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are to lead US mediation in Abu Dhabi. The two envoys could then travel to Russia to meet Vladimir Putin. The US official said he was cautiously optimistic and claimed to perceive, for the first time, a genuine willingness on the Russian side to end the conflict.
