Dangers Go Beyond Ukraine in Sham US Peace Plan

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The Trump administration is orchestrating ceasefire negotiations to halt fighting related to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It has recently presented a peace plan to both sides.

According to media reports, the draft agreement clearly states that the United States will recognize Russian sovereignty over the Crimean Peninsula in southern Ukraine. Russia unilaterally annexed that region in 2014. The plan also would recognize Russia's effective control over occupied territories in four eastern and southern regions of Ukraine.

Annexation of the Crimean Peninsula was only the starting point for Moscow's designs to "change the status quo by force" in neighboring countries. We should not overlook that reality. For the US to approve this blatant land grab is tantamount to condoning a war of aggression that violates international law.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's insistence that Kyiv cannot recognize Russia's sovereignty over the peninsula is perfectly proper.

Like Illegal Occupation of the Northern Territories

The fate of the peace plan is of concern to Japan as well. The Soviet Union invaded the Northern Territories, which are inherently Japanese territory, in the summer of 1945. Moreover, Russia continues to occupy those four islands illegally.

Moscow's annexation of Crimea is a similar outrage, which Japan cannot accept. Doing so would also encourage China, which is plotting to annex Taiwan, to launch a military invasion to achieve that goal in the near future.

The Trump peace plan would not only require Ukraine to make territorial concessions. It would also bar that country from joining NATO and even include a gradual lifting of the sanctions on Russia that have been in place since 2014. Its provisions are clearly skewed to Moscow's advantage.

Russian President Vladimir Putin responded shrewdly to the Trump peace plan. The Kremlin announced that Russia would agree to a 30-hour ceasefire to coincide with Easter Sunday, which fell on April 20. This was likely an attempt to demonstrate its desire to cooperate with US efforts at mediation. Of course, it then violated the ceasefire overnight into Easter Sunday with multiple deadly attacks in Ukraine's Kherson region.

*Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (©Kyodo)*

US Must Stop Pandering to Putin

President Donald Trump has indicated that he may end the US mediation effort if the two sides do not compromise.

Putin's feigned conciliatory attitude merely reflects the current situation in which Russia is suffering from a shortage of weapons and personnel due to the prolonged invasion and sanctions. On the frontlines in Ukraine, the two sides continue to battle fiercely for every inch of land.

Trump has repeatedly dispatched his closest aide, Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff, to hold talks with Putin without consulting Ukraine. He has also pressured Zelenskyy, who has expressed reservations about the peace plan, saying the Ukrainian president was being "very detrimental to the peace negotiations."

However, even if a flawed agreement is reached, there is a danger that Russia will continue to increase its demands. It would likely start by demanding that Ukraine cede four eastern and southern provinces. Furthermore, resuming Moscow's all-out invasion cannot be dismissed.

To prevent this from happening, a peacekeeping force needs to be organized quickly to guarantee security after the ceasefire. Otherwise, the unity of the West, including Europe and Japan, is in question.