Peace talk show: Why key elements of the Ukraine “peace plans” remain unworkable

The central question in the talks is the line at which both sides would be prepared to stop fighting. Russia’s position remains unchanged: full control of the Donbas. Although the Luhansk Region is almost entirely occupied by Russian forces, such terms would still require Ukrainian forces to withdraw — without a fight — from the significant parts of the Donetsk Region that remain under Kyiv’s control.

The Insider has previously detailed why surrendering the remaining part of the Donbas — including a belt of heavily fortified “fortress cities” that are integrated into a broader defensive line in eastern Ukraine — would pose a direct threat to the security of the country’s entire “left bank” east of the Dnipro River.

Under the Dmitriev-Witkoff plan, the abandoned territories would become a “demilitarized zone.” The proposal also included demands for the recognition of Crimea — and, implicitly, Sevastopol — as well as the acceptance of “de facto” Russian control over Donetsk and Luhansk and a freezing of the front line in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions.