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Berlin talks offer no clarity on Ukraine security guarantees — Bild

The paper’s Deputy Editor-in-Chief and correspondent Paul Ronzheimer noted that the official statements differ significantly from behind-the-scenes conversations

BERLIN, December 16. /TASS/. Despite the official remarks made by European and US officials, the talks in Berlin did not resolve the key issues of security guarantees and possible territorial concessions from the Ukrainian side, the Bild newspaper reported, citing Ukrainian sources.

The paper’s Deputy Editor-in-Chief and correspondent Paul Ronzheimer noted that the official statements differ significantly from behind-the-scenes conversations. "It is the same as last time, the Europeans hope that together they could gain [US President Donald] Trump’s support and prevent the implementation of the anti-Ukrainian peace plan," a Ukrainian government source told Bild.

As Bild points out, Kiev has no idea what guarantees it will eventually receive. In addition, "even if the Ukrainians understand that territorial concessions are inevitable, at least temporarily," the withdrawal of troops from Donbass will be hard to explain to the population, the author believes. According to Ronzheimer, it is currently "difficult to carry out from a legal standpoint." Nevertheless, US special presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, businessman Jared Kushner, took a firm stance on the issue of Ukraine’s territorial concessions, the newspaper’s sources say.

The positive remarks following the Berlin talks are most likely aimed at keeping Trump content and buying some time, Ronzheimer estimates. Meanwhile, none of the participants believe that Moscow would give up on its demands, he stated.

"It would seem that we currently have no good options. Either we are forced to partially surrender or the war will go on, with no new assistance that could change the situation," a Ukrainian government source told Bild.

The first round of negotiations between the US and Ukrainian delegations took place in Berlin on December 14 and lasted about five hours. The parties continued dialogue on December 15, when the meeting lasted about two hours. On Monday evening, a number of European leaders, as well as the head of the European Commission and the NATO secretary general, commented on the talks.

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