Any plan to work needs Ukrainians and Europeans on board

Ukraine and Europe must be consulted on any efforts to end Russia’s invasion of its neighbor, top European diplomats said Thursday, as reports circulated about a U.S.-Russian proposal to end the war at a time when corruption allegations have rattled Ukraine’s government.

1news.media, citing AP, reports that the talk of a secret peace plan piled more pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is also marshaling his country’s defenses against Russia’s bigger army, visiting European leaders to ensure they continue their support for Ukraine, and negotiating a major corruption scandal involving the embattled energy sector that has caused public outrage.

“For any plan to work, it needs Ukrainians and Europeans on board,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said at the start of a meeting in Brussels of the 27-nation bloc’s foreign ministers.

Representatives of EU countries agreed. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said that “all negotiations about a ceasefire, regarding the further peaceful development of Ukraine, can only be discussed and negotiated with Ukraine. And Europe will have to be included.

It wasn’t clear whether the foreign ministers had seen the peace plan, reportedly drawn up by U.S. and Russian envoys, and which was said to include forcing Ukraine to cede territory, a prospect Zelensky has ruled out.