Trump demands Europe’s biggest nuclear plant
(MENAFN) The United States is reportedly considering taking control of the area surrounding the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine—currently under Russian control—as part of a broader plan to broker peace between Kiev and Moscow, according to The Wall Street Journal. This idea is said to be one of several proposals put forward by President Donald Trump’s administration, with Ukraine expected to respond to the plan by the end of the week.
High-level meetings between U.S., Ukrainian, and European officials were held in Paris last Thursday to discuss potential steps toward a peace agreement. One proposal discussed designates the land around the nuclear facility as neutral territory under U.S. authority, the WSJ reported, citing anonymous sources.
The Zaporozhye region, where the power plant is located, was annexed by Russia following a 2022 referendum. Ukraine and its allies have rejected the legitimacy of that vote. In March, Trump claimed that Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky had offered U.S. control over Ukraine's nuclear facilities—a statement Zelensky later denied, clarifying that the conversation was about potential U.S. investment in the Zaporozhye plant, not ownership.
Other elements of the peace framework allegedly under discussion include U.S. recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea and no objections to Russia maintaining control over four additional formerly Ukrainian territories, including Zaporozhye. The plan would also drop Ukraine’s NATO membership ambitions. However, it does not suggest limiting the size of Ukraine’s armed forces or restricting NATO troop deployments by European member states.
If Ukraine, the U.S., and European nations reach agreement on these points, the plan will reportedly be formally presented to Moscow. However, Russia has consistently opposed any NATO presence in Ukraine and has reiterated that the 2022 Istanbul ceasefire proposal—containing military limitations on Ukraine—should be the basis of any peace deal. That agreement was dismissed by Kiev after pressure from then-U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Moscow has since accused the EU and U.K. of deliberately trying to derail Trump’s peace mediation in order to prolong the war. Trump has stated that if talks become too difficult, his administration is prepared to walk away from the negotiation process.
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