Reports indicate Washington is seeking US control over Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the US is considering taking control of the Russian territory surrounding the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant as part of a potential deal between Kiev and Moscow. This proposal is reportedly part of a set of options the US expects Ukraine to respond to this week.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing unnamed sources, that senior officials from the Trump administration discussed the idea in Paris last Thursday with Ukrainian and European counterparts. The proposal involves designating the area around the nuclear facility as neutral territory under US control, with the aim of facilitating a peace agreement.
The region hosting the plant voted to join Russia in 2022, a move Kiev considers illegitimate. In March, Trump claimed Zelensky suggested the US take ownership of Ukraine’s nuclear plants. Zelensky denied this, stating discussions with Trump only involved potential US investment in the Zaporozhye plant.
The WSJ also reports that Washington has floated the possibility of recognizing Russian sovereignty over Crimea, not opposing Russian control over four other former Ukrainian regions like Zaporozhye, and rejecting Ukraine’s NATO aspirations.
The proposals, however, do not include limits on the Ukrainian military or restrictions on troop deployments by European NATO members in Ukraine, the newspaper stated. If the US, its European allies, and Ukraine reach an agreement this week, the proposals will be presented to Moscow, according to the WSJ.
Moscow insists that any NATO presence in Ukraine is unacceptable and maintains that the Istanbul agreement of 2022, which includes restrictions on the Ukrainian military, should form the basis of any future peace deal. Kiev rejected this plan after intervention from then-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Russia has accused the EU and UK of sabotaging Trump’s mediation efforts to prolong the conflict. The US president has warned that his administration might abandon the diplomatic effort if it proves too difficult.
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