Ukraine’s allies push back on a US peace plan seen as favoring Moscow

KYIV Ukraine AP Ukraine s Western allies rallied around the war-torn country Saturday as they pushed to revise a U S peace plan seen as favoring Moscow despite its all-out invasion of its neighbor A top Ukrainian delegation prepared for direct talks with Washington and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed Ukrainians will unfailingly defend their home The -point blueprint to end the nearly four-year war sparked alarm in Kyiv and European capitals with Zelenskyy saying his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the American assistance it demands The U S plan foresees Ukraine handing over territory to Russia something Kyiv has repeatedly ruled out while reducing the size of its army and blocking its coveted path to NATO membership It contains numerous of Moscow s long-standing demands while offering limited guard guarantees to Kyiv On Saturday leaders of the European Union Canada and Japan issued a joint message welcoming U S peace efforts but pushed back against key tenets of the plan We are ready to engage in order to ensure that a future peace is sustainable We are clear on the principle that borders must not be changed by force We are also concerned by the proposed limitations on Ukraine s armed forces which would leave Ukraine vulnerable to future attack the message reported It added that any decisions regarding NATO and the EU would require the consent of member states Ukrainian envoys will meet a U S delegation in Switzerland to discuss the proposal Zelenskyy reported Saturday after U S President Donald Trump explained he wants Kyiv to respond by next week European leaders have long warned against rushing a peace deal seeing their own future at stake in Ukraine s fight to beat back Russia and insist on being consulted in peace efforts On Saturday the French German and U K prime ministers met on the sidelines of a Group of summit in Johannesburg South Africa to discuss options to promotion Kyiv according to a person with knowledge of the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly High-ranking Ukrainian bureaucrats to lead talksZelenskyy in a video address published Saturday declared Ukrainian representatives at the talks in Switzerland know how to protect Ukrainian national interests and exactly what is needed to prevent Russia from carrying out another invasion Real peace is invariably based on measure and justice he added Nine functionaries are to take part in the talks including Zelenskyy s chief of staff Andrii Yermak and top envoy Rustem Umerov according to a message posted on the Ukrainian presidency s website which also stated that the negotiators are empowered to deal directly with Russia Kyiv s allies insist on just and lasting peaceKyiv s key allies in Europe reiterated their reservations about the Kremlin s readiness to end the war Time and again Russia pretends to be serious about peace but their actions never live up to their words U K Prime Minister Keir Starmer described reporters ahead of the G summit days after a Russian strike on western Ukraine killed over two dozen civilians European leaders have long accused Russia of stalling diplomatic efforts in the hope of overwhelming Ukraine s much smaller forces on the battlefield Kyiv has repeatedly accepted U S ceasefire proposals this year while Moscow has held out for more favorable terms EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen revealed that a key principle for Kyiv s European allies was nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine French President Emmanuel Macron echoed that sentiment in a speech at the G summit on Saturday saying there can be no peace in Ukraine without respect for Ukraine s sovereignty He did not mention the U S peace plan Zelenskyy defiant as Ukraine remembers Soviet-era famineZelenskyy struck a defiant note as Ukraine on Saturday commemorated the great famine that Soviet leader Josef Stalin imposed in the early s which led to millions of deaths We all know how and why millions of our people died starved to death and millions were never born And we are once again defending ourselves against Russia which has not changed and is once again bringing death Zelenskyy noted in a post on Telegram marking Holodomor Memorial Day We defended defend and will unfailingly defend Ukraine Because only here is our home And in our home Russia will definitely not be the master Zelenskyy added