The United States has asked Russia to prepare a new draft security agreement with Europe that would explain both Moscow's demands and the measures it would take to ease tensions, Axios reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter. The proposal forms part of efforts to reach a wider agreement ending the war in Ukraine.
US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are scheduled to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 12 November to repeat that request. According to a US official, they also intend to seek Putin's approval for European representatives to join the next round of peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
Russia has long pursued a European security agreement that would limit NATO expansion and scale back the alliance's military presence in Eastern Europe. Washington previously rejected those demands but now appears open to considering some version of them within a broader settlement. Many European governments remain deeply wary of the US administration's approach.
The proposed security arrangement was a central subject of discussions in Abu Dhabi. Two sources familiar with those talks said Russian negotiators argued that Putin had invaded Ukraine because then-US president Joe Biden had failed to respond to a 2021 letter setting out Putin's security concerns. That account was presented by the Russian negotiators as their explanation for the invasion.
According to one source, Kushner and Witkoff responded that circumstances had changed considerably since 2021. They asked Moscow to produce a fresh draft addressing its concerns while identifying reciprocal steps it would take to reduce the conflict and reassure European countries that Russia would not attack them in the future.
The envoys also told Russian negotiators that substantive discussions about Europe's security required European participation in future peace talks. Moscow has so far resisted including Europeans in negotiations with Ukraine. Washington hopes their participation would make European governments more receptive to negotiating and completing a broader security agreement before the war ends.
One source said questions about security guarantees were crucial to a settlement for both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Putin. The same source said Washington had assured European countries that it would not accept a security agreement with Russia without European and Ukrainian involvement, or grant Moscow veto power over European security decisions.
The proposal has already drawn objections. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul rejected calls for a new European security architecture as a way to end Russia's war against Ukraine. On 7 November, Zelenskyy warned the Trump administration that its proposed plan could be dangerous because Russia had shown no signs of wanting to end the war. European capitals have also voiced concern that the vaguely defined initiative could leave them sidelined in negotiations.
