UKRAINE AGREES TO U.S. PROPOSED 30-DAY TRUCE WITH RUSSIA

Wed 12 March 2025:

The United States has agreed to resume military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine after Kyiv expressed “readiness” to accept a 30-day ceasefire in its conflict with Russia.

The Saudi official Al-Ekhbariya channel said on X late Tuesday: “The US-Ukrainian talks in Jeddah succeeded under Saudi diplomatic efforts.”

“After 9 hours of US-Ukrainian negotiations, Ukraine agreed to the US proposal for a temporary ceasefire lasting 30 days, extendable, along with a prisoner exchange between the parties (Russia and Ukraine),” the Saudi broadcaster also said.

While the parties are yet to comment on talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday said Kyiv considered Washington’s proposal for a 30-day ceasefire with Russia as “positive.”

__________________________________________________________________________

https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22

__________________________________________________________________________

Early on Tuesday, US and Ukrainian delegations began talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah to discuss prospects for a possible Moscow-Kyiv peace deal.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha attended the talks, in the presence of Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan.

On Monday, Zelenskyy said on Telegram that Ukraine has always been seeking peace since the beginning of the war, indicating that Russia is the only reason that the war is still ongoing.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Telegram that the ceasefire proposal would “establish a complete ceasefire for 30 days, not only regarding missiles, drones and bombs, not only in the Black Sea, but also along the entire front line”.

US President Donald Trump said he hoped Russia would agree to the ceasefire plan, signalling that the US will hold a meeting with Russia later on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Following the progress made in talks, the US said that it would “immediately lift the pause on intelligence sharing and resume security assistance” to Kyiv, which it had suspended last week, effectively hobbling Ukraine’s ability to track Russian troop movements, shield against missile strikes and carry out attacks.

The suspension came after a blow-up last month between Trump and Zelenskyy, who had travelled to Washington to discuss a rare earth minerals deal, which would see the US gain access to the lucrative resources in Ukraine.

The joint statement indicated that the deal was back on the table, with the two countries set to “conclude as soon as possible a comprehensive agreement for developing Ukraine’s critical mineral resources to expand Ukraine’s economy and guarantee Ukraine’s long-term prosperity and security”.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the ball was now in Russia’s court.

“We’re going to tell them this is what’s on the table. Ukraine is ready to stop shooting and start talking. And now it’ll be up to them to say yes or no,” he said. “If they say no, then we’ll unfortunately know what the impediment is to peace here.”

On Feb. 24, 2022, Russia launched a military offensive against Ukraine. Moscow demands Kyiv abandon aspirations to join Western military alliances as a condition for peace, a stance Ukraine views as “interference” in its sovereignty.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

__________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

WhatsApp CHANNEL
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22