FLASH NEWS
What was not seen from the negotiations/ BBC sheds light on the role of Great Britain: How Keir Starmer convinced the US and Ukraine to reach an agreement
2025-03-12 12:17:01 / BOTA
The UK helped Ukraine and the US reach the ceasefire agreement. The UK was “deeply involved” in supporting Ukraine and the US to reach the ceasefire agreement with Russia, according to UK government sources.
The BBC has been told that there has been a joint European effort over the past week, led by Sir Keir Starmer, to bring the US and Ukraine back into each other's good graces. Sir Keir praised the "extraordinary progress" and called it a "significant moment for peace in Ukraine".
The US-Ukraine pact shows that a deal never died with Trump.
UK sources say that last week the prime minister's National Security Adviser, Jonathan Powell, worked with his US counterpart Mike Waltz and German and French officials to draw up a plan for a ceasefire and the steps that might follow.
Over the weekend, Powell traveled to Kiev to meet with Zelensky and help draft a written proposal, which included a temporary pause in fighting, then confidence-building measures such as the exchange of prisoners of war, the return of Ukrainian children taken by Russia, and the release of civilians.
This proposal was agreed upon by the Ukrainians and the Americans, setting the stage for what happened in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
Following talks between the White House and Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia, Sir Keir congratulated both men on the agreement, adding that "we must all now redouble our efforts" to secure a peace deal for Ukraine.
On Saturday, Sir Keir will have a phone call with some of the European leaders he has called the "coalition of the willing" to discuss peacekeeping efforts aimed at deterring Russian President Vladimir Putin from launching future incursions into Ukraine.
Those joining the call are "ready to help end this war in a just and permanent way that allows Ukraine to enjoy its freedom," he said.
It is Russia that will now be under pressure. One of the goals of the European teams working behind the scenes remains to ensure that Russia is secure if it wants to achieve peace.
Separately, the Kremlin said on Wednesday it was waiting for US officials to provide details on the proposed 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine following talks between Ukrainian and US officials in Saudi Arabia the day before.
"We expect, as was said yesterday in Jeddah, that Secretary of State Rubio and National Security Advisor Waltz will inform us through various channels about the details of the negotiations and the understanding reached in the coming days," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Peskov said officials in Moscow were "closely examining" the joint US-Ukraine statement on the proposed ceasefire.
US President Donald Trump said he plans to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the proposed 30-day ceasefire within this week.
Peskov said on Wednesday that the time and place for Trump's possible personal meeting with Putin have not yet been determined.
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