A.Russia has proposed sweeping changes to the European security architecture as part of negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, including Finland’s withdrawal from NATO and a ban on the alliance’s military bases in the Baltic states, according to a German newspaper. Reported image Friday.
The informal proposals, reportedly shared with European representatives during US-mediated negotiations in Abu Dhabi, extend well beyond Ukraine’s territorial disputes and seek to establish what the newspaper described as “a new European security order”.
The report comes as US special envoy Jared Kushner announced that Moscow and kyiv had agreed to include European representatives in the next round of peace negotiations, allowing broader security arrangements to be discussed alongside territorial issues.
According to Bild, the Russian proposals reflect Moscow’s long-standing position that Western governments had promised not to expand NATO eastward.
UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan (center), US President Donald Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff (right) and Trump’s son-in-law and advisor Jared Kushner (left) attend the first day of trilateral talks on Ukraine, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, November 10, 2026. (Handout office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates)
“Russia did not demand Finland’s withdrawal from NATO”
Russia has not demanded Finland’s withdrawal from NATO as part of negotiations on a new security architecture in Europe, said Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.
“I don’t know. No, that wasn’t the case. Of course, it wasn’t exactly discussed,” he told reporters, commenting on the news.
Russia seeks Ukrainian territory and restrictions on NATO expansion
Under the proposals outlined by Bild, Russia would retain all Ukrainian territory it currently occupies and take control of the entire Donbas region.
Ukraine would be required to return the remaining parts of Donetsk and Luhansk still under kyiv’s control.
The ports of Odessa and Mykolaiv would be demilitarized and banned from serving as naval bases, while separate agreements would guarantee freedom of navigation in the Black and Baltic Seas.
The announced plan would also require Ukraine to remain permanently non-aligned, preventing it from joining NATO while leaving open the possibility of membership in the European Union.
Beyond Ukraine, Moscow would seek to ban NATO military bases in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Finland, which joined NATO in 2023, would be required to return to its pre-membership status, thereby withdrawing from the alliance.
The proposals also extend to Moldova, envisaging its transformation into a federal republic comprising Moldova, Transnistria and Gagauzia.
If Moldova subsequently joined the European Union, Transnistria and Gagauzia would be allowed to hold referendums on their independence, according to the report.
In exchange, Russia would agree to withdraw its nuclear weapons from Belarus and refrain from deploying intermediate-range missiles there.
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council meeting in Moscow on November 12, 2026. (AFP Photo)
US says Europe will join next round of peace talks
The reported demands emerged as Kushner said Thursday that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to expand the next round of U.S.-mediated negotiations to include European representatives.
Kushner, who participated in talks in Abu Dhabi alongside U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday and Wednesday, said the discussions helped identify possible areas of agreement.
“We have made significant progress in understanding both sides’ concerns, identifying possible solutions, and establishing a path forward. Both sides have now agreed to expand the next round of negotiations to include our European partners,” Kushner wrote on X.
He said European participation would allow negotiators to address broader post-war security arrangements alongside territorial disputes between Russia and Ukraine.
According to Kushner, ending the conflict would require “credible security guarantees, deconfliction mechanisms, and reciprocal de-escalation commitments that reduce the risk of future conflict.”
He also stressed that Ukraine’s security concerns should be taken into account before broader arrangements governing European security can be finalized.
Kushner says there will be no deal before comprehensive settlement
Kushner said he agreed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to maintain contact, including through kyiv’s negotiating team.
“We will begin discussing these interconnected issues in parallel, with the understanding that, apart from humanitarian measures, nothing will be finalized until a comprehensive agreement is reached,” he said.
The US envoy also said negotiators were working on what he described as the “largest” prisoner exchange of the war, one of the key issues emerging from the latest Abu Dhabi talks.
He expressed hope that both sides would demonstrate the necessary will to proceed with the exchange, adding that details of the next rounds of negotiations and their timetables would be announced soon.
“President Trump is committed to ending this horrible war. Significant differences remain, but we are encouraged by the progress being made.
We will undertake whatever diplomatic work is necessary to find a breakthrough that ends the fighting,” Kushner added.
Moscow calls for a new European security architecture
The diplomatic developments follow new contacts involving US, Russian and Ukrainian officials, including talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and Zelensky in Dublin.
Following talks in the Kremlin on Thursday, the Russian president’s aide, Yuri Ushakov, said Moscow was ready to begin talks with Washington on the parameters of a new European security architecture.
He added that Russia hoped that European countries would support efforts to establish this framework, which Moscow was ready to immediately discuss “in tandem” with the United States.
Ushakov also criticized the European approach to negotiations, arguing that European governments had to decide whether they sought peace or wanted to continue the war.
“So far, all their practical actions are in the direction of the latter solution,” he said.
Russian authorities have not commented directly on Kushner’s announcement regarding European participation in the next round of negotiations.
November 13, 2026 1:37 p.m. GMT+03:00
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