Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that a central element of President Donald Trump’s peace blueprint — the requirement that Ukraine and the world formally accept Russia’s control over some of the land it seized in the east — is stopping the negotiations cold. Addressing Sweden’s Parliament, he said that one portion of the plan essentially asks Ukraine to sign away part of its sovereign territory.
Zelenskyy emphasized that Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants legal recognition to what he has stolen, to break the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty,” adding that “that’s the main problem. You all understand what that means.” The Ukrainians’ refusal to bless any territorial carve-outs remains their largest sticking point with the U.S. proposal.
The dispute comes after U.S. and Ukrainian officials spent the weekend in Switzerland examining the full 28-point framework and even explored whether Zelenskyy should head to the U.S. this week as Trump aims — roughly — for a Thanksgiving-time breakthrough. Trump has insisted that the timeline is adjustable, noting that the proposal was “not my final” version.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio — who traveled to Geneva for the talks — painted a cautiously upbeat picture, saying “very, very meaningful” progress was made with both the Ukrainian and European representatives. He described the day as “probably the most productive day we have had on this issue” since Trump returned to the White House in January, while warning that he didn’t want to “declare victory or finality” yet. Negotiators, he said, still have unresolved points to hammer out.
European leaders echoed that mix of optimism and lingering concern. Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said there were still “major issues which remain to be resolved” even as he praised the headway made in Geneva.
According to a Sunday night statement from the White House, American and Ukrainian officials have “drafted an updated and refined peace framework,” though Moscow complained Monday that the new draft had not yet been shared with them. Putin said late last week that the American plan could form the basis for a settlement, but cautioned that if Kyiv rejected it, Russian troops would continue pushing forward.
The blueprint, which U.S. officials say holds Trump’s full support, triggered sharp anxiety among several of Washington’s European partners, who view the document as tilting too far in Russia’s direction.
Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S., Olga Stefanishyna, underscored that point during an interview on CBS News’ “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” saying her government had not signed on to all portions of the proposal.
{Matzav.com}
Palestinian Islamic Jihad announced Monday that its operatives had come across the body of a hostage while conducting excavation work in an area north of Nuseirat in central Gaza. The group said it “found” the remains earlier in the day, echoing details first reported by Al Jazeera. Despite the claim, neither Islamic Jihad nor Hamas issued any immediate statement about transferring the body back to Israel.
According to Israeli authorities, three murdered hostages are still being held somewhere in the Gaza Strip: Dror Or, Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, and Thai citizen Sudthisak Rinthalak. Their remains have been unaccounted for since the terror groups seized them, and Israel has been pressing for their return.
Over the weekend, Arabic-language outlets reported that Hamas and Islamic Jihad had launched renewed efforts to track down the final three bodies. The reports indicated that both organizations were scrambling to locate them, and that the process had accelerated in recent days.
Video circulating online showed Islamic Jihad fighters overseeing digging operations in Nuseirat, with excavators — some marked with Egyptian flags — working near them. Those images underscored the scope of the search efforts underway in the center of the Strip.
Al Jazeera said the searches began Friday, with teams expanding into multiple locations after earlier attempts failed to yield results. The operations have reportedly grown more urgent as pressure mounts to fulfill commitments made in negotiations.
Meanwhile, the Saudi outlet Asharq al-Awsat reported that Hamas was conducting an additional search in the Zeitoun area, south of Gaza City, focused on recovering another body believed to be held there. The group has been combing through several neighborhoods as part of its efforts.
Under the terms of the current ceasefire framework, the terror groups are obligated to return all bodies they are holding. They have claimed that repeated searches have not yet succeeded in locating the last of the remains — assertions Israeli officials have openly questioned.
The most recently recovered slain hostage was Meny Godard, who was murdered and taken captive from Kibbutz Be’eri. His body was returned on November 13, marking the last confirmed transfer prior to this latest announcement.
{Matzav.com}
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon used today’s Security Council session on the Middle East to deliver a forceful message directly to Palestinian Authority envoy Riyad Mansour. Danon confronted him across the table, arguing that the PA’s security establishment has failed to rein in violence in Judea and Samaria.
While speaking in the chamber, Danon charged that the PA’s sizable armed forces have done little to curb militancy. He pointed out that armed cells continue to flourish under the Authority’s watch and that its security apparatus has allowed dangerous networks to expand without interference. “The Palestinian Authority is unable to stop terrorism even in Judea and Samaria. It has more than 32,000 armed operatives. The PA has proven incapable of confronting radicals. Terror groups operate openly. Iranian weapons slip in unchecked. Extremists grow stronger because no one stops them,” Danon told the PA representative.
Danon said that Israel is consistently forced to step in where the Authority refuses to act. He argued that Israeli forces are compelled to dismantle what the PA ignores and to seize caches of weapons that pass through unchecked. “Israel has to step in to seize the weapons the PA ignores to dismantle the cells it won’t confront and to disarm the terrorists it refuses to challenge,” he declared.
The ambassador stressed that any entity that rewards extremists rather than dismantling them cannot be considered a legitimate governing option for the future. He reiterated that such conduct disqualifies the PA from any role in Gaza’s next chapter. “Those who are unable to confront terrorists and continue to reward them are the problem, not the solution, and they will certainly not rule Gaza,” Danon concluded.
{Matzav.com}
