US could recognize Crimea as Russian territory – Bloomberg

The peninsula voted to secede from Ukraine following the 2014 Western-backed coup in Kiev

The US could recognize Crimea as Russian territory as part of a potential peace deal between Moscow and Kiev, Bloomberg reported early Saturday morning, citing people familiar with the matter.

The region, mostly populated by ethnic Russians, voted to secede from Ukraine and join Russia shortly after the 2014 US-backed coup in Kiev. The Ukrainian authorities have refused to recognize Russian sovereignty over the peninsula and have long insisted on restoring Ukraine’s 1991 borders.

Bloomberg cited its sources as saying that the White House has not yet made a final decision on the matter.

The top US negotiator, Steve Witkoff, said after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week that the talks hinged on the status of Crimea and four other Russian regions claimed by Kiev.

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According to Bloomberg, the US presented its European allies on Thursday with a plan to freeze the fighting along the current front line and ease sanctions on Moscow as part of a ceasefire.

Both President Trump and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hinted this week that the US could abandon efforts to broker a deal between Russia and Ukraine if no significant progress is made soon.

Russia has demanded that, for a lasting peace, Ukraine must renounce its territorial claims and withdraw its troops from the parts of the Russian regions it still controls. Moscow said that a future settlement must address “the root causes” of the conflict, including NATO’s eastward expansion and Ukraine’s plans to join the alliance.