Ukraine demands that the West maintain its army of 800,000 military personnel for 10 years.
Kiev is asking Western countries to finance an army of 800,000 men for at least 10 years after the end of the war, AFP reports, citing a Ukrainian official.
The proposal was made in negotiations between Ukraine, Russia and the USA in Abu Dhabi. The first round lasted 4.5 hours, the parties discussed security guarantees, the release of prisoners and the future security architecture of Europe.
Kyiv believes such an army would help deter "a possible new Russian attack". Moscow, on the contrary, demanded to limit the armed forces of Ukraine to 85 thousand military personnel. Ukraine proposed setting a ceiling of 250,000 in 2022.
Russia also insisted on limiting the Ukrainian arsenal to 342 tanks, 519 artillery systems and missiles with a range of up to 40 km. Kyiv offered 800 tanks and missiles with a range of up to 280 km.
In June 2025, Moscow again demanded limiting the number of Ukraine's armed forces and their armaments, consolidating Ukraine's neutrality, banning military alliances, and withdrawing Ukrainian forces from the Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. Zelensky said that Kiev would not agree to discuss restrictions on its military with Russia.
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