Here’s a summary of the article:
**Ukraine and Europe Reject Putin’s Ceasefire Proposal**
The European Union (EU) and Ukrainian officials have rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine. Instead, they presented a counterproposal to US officials ahead of a planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and Putin on August 15.
Putin had proposed a ceasefire if Kyiv withdrew its forces from Donetsk Oblast, giving Moscow full control of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, as well as Crimea. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky firmly rejected this proposal, insisting that Ukraine’s territory cannot be ceded to end Russia’s war.
**Counterproposal**
The EU and Ukrainian officials’ counterproposal demands that a ceasefire be enacted before further steps are taken. They also insist that any exchange of territory can only occur in a reciprocal manner, meaning both sides must agree on the terms of such an exchange.
**US Openness to Ceasefire Proposal Raises Concerns**
Trump has suggested that he may include Ukraine in future negotiations with Russia after meeting with Putin. However, his comments have raised concerns among European officials, who worry that this could lead to a weak agreement that favors Russia’s interests.
**Ukraine Strikes Russian Drone Facility**
In other news, Ukrainian drones from the Security Service’s Special Operations Center “A” struck a storage facility in Russia’s Tatarstan Republic housing Shahed-type drones and foreign components used in their assembly. This is not Ukraine’s first strike on Tatarstan since the beginning of the full-scale war in 2022.
**Russia Unfazed by Strikes**
Russia has not officially commented on the reported strikes, but a senior Russian official suggested that unspecified European countries will make “titanic efforts to disrupt” the planned meeting between Putin and Trump.
