Italy proposes four-stage plan to end war in Ukraine

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio handed over the document with a plan to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the G7 countries
Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio handed over the document with a plan to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the G7 countries

Russia's war against Ukraine - the main events of May 19

According to media reports, Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio has already handed over a document with the plan to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the G7 countries.

Italy is also proposing to set up an international group to monitor compliance with the plan (the complete list of countries has not been identified, but Italy, France, Germany, Turkey, the United States, China, Canada, United Kingdom, Poland, and Israel are among them) and the group also involves the European Union, the UN and other international organizations.

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Italy proposes four stages of ending the war:

  • a ceasefire in Ukraine and the demilitarization of the front line under UN supervision;

  • negotiations on the status of Ukraine, which provide for the country's accession to the EU, and non-accession to NATO;

  • bilateral agreement between Ukraine and Russia on Crimea and Donbas: at the suggestion of the Italian authorities, the "disputed territories" will have full autonomy with the right to ensure their own security, but sovereignty over the regions will belong to Kyiv;

  • concluding a multilateral agreement on peace and security in Europe, covering disarmament and arms control, conflict prevention, and confidence-building measures.

The plan stipulates that Russian troops are then withdrawn from Ukraine.

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A spokesman for the Russian dictator, Dmitry Peskov, said the Kremlin was unaware of the details of the plan, according to Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. Peskov added that the Russian side "welcomes the participation of all those who can contribute to the settlement, and such sincere efforts will not be ruled out."

Earlier, an adviser to the head of the President's Office, Mykhailo Podoliak, said that Ukraine should not be offered a ceasefire, as this is impossible without the total withdrawal of Russian troops. He stressed that the aggressor country is not ready to completely leave Ukrainian territories.