The General Staff denied negotiations on reducing the Ukrainian army.
Фото: Генштаб ЗСУ
Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Andriy Gnatov denied reports that the reduction of the Ukrainian army was discussed during negotiations with US representatives in Geneva.
In an interview with Liga.net, he explained that the discussion was only about the vision for the size of the Armed Forces in peacetime, which is a subject of discussion.
Gnatov emphasized that an important position was voiced during the dialogue with the American side: a well-equipped and combat-ready army is the best guarantee of security for Ukraine. He stated that the General Staff already understands how to motivate service members to remain in service after the end of hostilities, but all government institutions must work to achieve this. This involves developing a clear model for the future military—its size, financial support, and social guarantees.
The Financial Times previously reported that the updated peace plan allegedly calls for limiting the size of the Ukrainian army to 800,000 troops.
The US revised this clause: the document removed the wording about “limitations” at the level of 600 thousand and left only the thesis that the number of the Ukrainian Armed Forces “will remain” at a certain level, without specific figures.
It is known that a meeting between US and Ukrainian delegations took place in Geneva, during which the parties discussed the updated American peace proposal. The talks demonstrated significant progress and agreement on positions regarding further steps .
The day before, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated in Geneva that the deadline set by President Donald Trump for Ukraine to accept the peace plan could be changed. During the talks, the progress of the 28-point peace plan and further steps to engage Russia were discussed .
Yesterday, it was announced that the first session of negotiations between the Ukrainian and American delegations concluded in Geneva , during which the parties recorded progress on joint peace proposals. Representatives of Ukraine and the United States stated that the process will continue and will be supplemented by new agreed-upon provisions.
Incidentally, Rustem Umerov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council and a member of the Ukrainian delegation at the peace talks, stated that the peace document with the United States is in its final stages . According to him, the document already contains Ukraine’s key priorities.
Key provisions of a draft US “peace plan,” allegedly agreed upon by representatives of Donald Trump and the Kremlin, were previously revealed. The document contains 28 points concerning Ukraine’s security, territory, economy, and future.
Subsequently, the full text of the European counter-draft to the American 28-point peace plan for Ukraine was released in Brussels . The document, prepared by the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, proposed amendments to each point of the basic plan.
Also follow “Pryamy” on Facebook , Twitter , Telegram and Instagram .