US to back Ukraine's right to maintain sufficient army in talks with Russia, Bloomberg reports

The United States will demand that Russia recognize Ukraine's sovereign right to maintain adequately equipped armed forces and a defense industry as part of any peace agreement, Bloomberg reported on April 24, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

The issue is expected to be raised by U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on April 25.

The demand would directly challenge one of the Kremlin's war aims — Ukraine's demilitarization — and is part of a broader push to secure guarantees for Kyiv.

The U.S. also reportedly wants Russia to return the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant to Ukrainian control. The plant, occupied by Russian forces since 2022, would then be placed under U.S. oversight to supply power to cities on both sides of the front line.

Other points include providing Ukraine with a secure passage across the Dnipro River and restoring Russian-occupied territory in Kharkiv Oblast to Ukrainian control. Russia currently holds around 200 square kilometers (about 77 square miles) of the region.

The negotiations come as Ukraine remains under pressure to respond to a broader U.S. peace plan first presented in Paris on April 17. According to the Wall Street Journal, that plan includes U.S. recognition of Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and a ban on Ukraine joining NATO — two long-standing Kremlin demands.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has rejected any deal involving territorial concessions. "This violates our Constitution. This is our territory, the territory of the people of Ukraine," he said on April 22.

U.S. President Donald Trump has denied Ukraine is being forced to accept the Crimea clause, though he criticized Zelensky's refusal to negotiate on the matter as "harmful to the peace negotiations."

Russia launched deadly missile strikes on Kyiv on April 24, killing at least 12 civilians and injuring 90. Trump responded by calling the attacks "not necessary" and "poorly timed," but did not condemn Russia or threaten consequences.

Ukraine has already accepted a U.S.-proposed 30-day ceasefire introduced in March, contingent on Russia's agreement. Moscow has refused so far.

Witkoff, the Trump administration's Middle East envoy, has met Putin multiple times this year and has faced criticism from both U.S. and Ukrainian officials for supporting proposals seen as favorable to the Kremlin, including trading territory for peace.