Any peace with Russia must have Ukraine's consent – PM Starmer
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said that any proposal for a peace deal with Russia must have Ukraine’s agreement as European leaders seek to ensure regional security issues are factored into U.S.-led talks to end the war.
"The future of Ukraine must be determined by Ukraine and we must never lose sight of that principle underpinning the just and lasting peace that we all want to see." Starmer said in comments to Bloomberg on Thursday.
Starmer’s statement echoed the words of European foreign policy chief Kaia Kallas, who said that any attempt to bring peace to Ukraine must be done with Kyiv’s participation.
"For any plan to work, Ukrainians and Europeans have to be on board. That’s absolutely clear," he said.
The 28-point proposal for a resumption of talks is modeled on the Gaza ceasefire agreement. It sets out the Kremlin’s well-known demands for concessions that Kyiv has repeatedly called unacceptable and that have so far thwarted all attempts to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire.
European diplomats have expressed skepticism about any imminent deal, noting that Putin has a reputation for seeming to accept offers under pressure. The Kremlin is trying to stop US sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, from coming into effect on Friday, according to sources familiar with the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity to speak freely.
