These past few weeks, as President Donald Trump intensifies diplomatic pressure on Ukraine and Russia to agree upon a ceasefire, the conversation around Ukraine’s future has shifted.

Instead of headlines focused solely on military confrontation, the global community is now confronting the equally complex task of negotiating peace.

Yet this raises a crucial and sensitive question: What form should this peace take?

That’s a question many of us here remember discussing at length in the early 1990s.

Then, before Bosnia, Afghanistan, Iraq and other places stole our thunder, Northern Ireland appeared to be the centre of global media attention.

And amidst this, we sensed that if we didn’t seize the moment, another might not come along any time soon.

Ukraine has reached its Good Friday moment. But here the Russian minority must be encouraged to integrate into a single nation state, where their culture and heritage is equally cherished.

I hope that one day the same is true of those with a British identity, if or when Northern Ireland becomes part of a unified, shared Ireland.

But why even focus on Russian speakers, you might well ask?

Putin has clearly shown very little concern for the welfare of those he claims to support. What he has done would be the equivalent of Britain blitzing the whole of Belfast to protect the Unionist population.

Unfortunately though, Russia is going to push the line of protecting that imperial minority, just as Britain did with the Partition of Ireland.

Ideally, the Americans – guided by Europe – would then come back with a Good Friday-type suggestion, but in reverse, if that makes sense!

Ukraine needs whole-state unity, and not partition.

Right now though, everything seems to be focused upon territorial compromise.

Both America and Russia appear to be going into negotiations with a view that it’s all about deciding which parts of Ukraine get eaten up by their hungry imperial neighbour.

The focus though should be on identity. This is the narrative that Europe has to push more forcefully, and more importantly than boots on the ground.

Somebody needs to suggest a way to integrate conflicting identities into one sovereign state. Partition is never the answer.

Most Ukrainians want to be modern European citizens living in a state of peace. Their love of the Eurovision Song Contest exemplifies this aspiration towards a unified, European-oriented identity.

These past few decades, a ‘Euro-vision’ is central to Ukrainians’ sense of themselves, explaining why they’ve been so competitive in that song contest.

It’s as much a part of their cultural heritage as Dana, Johnny Logan and Bucks Fizz are to people of a certain age on either side of the Border.

But for Ukraine, from Ruslana’s vibrant ‘Wild Dances’ in 2004 to Jamala’s poignant ‘1944’ and Kalush Orchestra’s emotive ‘Stefania’ in 2022, these Eurovision victories transcend mere entertainment.

They symbolise Ukraine’s unified identity, resilience, and commitment to a shared cultural heritage that crosses linguistic and ethnic divides.

Music and culture can serve as unifying forces, reminding both Ukrainians and Russian-speaking minorities of the benefits of coexistence within a modern European state rather than a partitioned war zone.

Partition, after all, risks turning Ukraine into a permanently fearful nation —a hamster or canary trapped nervously in a cage alongside a predatory cat.

Such a scenario would not secure genuine peace, but merely an uneasy stalemate.

Ultimately, the Ukrainian conflict is about more than territorial boundaries.

Any peace initiatives championed by Trump or any international mediator must recognise this complexity, avoiding simplistic territorial divisions.

Ukrainian sovereignty is cultural, emotional, and symbolic as much as physical. It is a European nation, albeit one that makes me think of a young person who has grown up, unable to break free of an overbearing parent.

Unfortunately, the present emphasis – particularly from a Russian and American perspective – is on territory rather than people.

This is partly to do with the fact that President Trump’s diplomatic style is characteristically blunt, rooted in transactional negotiations.

That approach may be motivated by a desire for quick results rather than nuanced resolutions.

Still, given his historical declarations about Ukraine, there's a genuine concern that a hastily arranged ceasefire might facilitate another Russian land-grab.

Russia needs to move towards the point that both Britain and Ireland reached in 1998; where arguably more concessions were made on the Irish side, giving up Articles 2 & 3.

Compromises such as that paved the way for these islands to live together peaceably.

We can see Bushmills as Irish whiskey, or British whiskey, or in the recent words of Ian Paisley in Washington: “Irish whiskey made in the UK.”

In a future shared Ireland, possibly it could become ‘Irish whiskey made in a place where you can still identify as British’.

Similarly, Ukraine needs a peace deal that explicitly protects the cultural, linguistic, and political rights of Russian-speaking minorities.

Personally I think Putin has exaggerated his concern for these groups, weaponising them as a justification for territorial ambitions.

Russia’s actions over the past decade, notably the annexation of Crimea and the wanton destruction of the Donbas region, demonstrate little genuine regard for ordinary civilians.

However, for the sake of peace, as we learned in the discussions that led to agreement in Belfast, every view has to be brought to the table.

That includes the prospect of partition, which is very real. And the more that European political leaders talk of ‘boots on the ground’, the more stubborn Putin is likely to be.

Inadvertently, it could lead to even more of a demand for a buffer zone.

But partition would be a tragic mistake. What Ukraine requires – and what international mediators, particularly President Trump, should strive towards – is a solution similar to what might eventually happen in the aftermath of a united Ireland.

There would have to be internationally endorsed safeguards ensuring that Russian-speaking minorities have guaranteed language rights, political representation, and cultural freedoms.

Such measures should reassure eastern Ukraine’s ‘Russians’ that their heritage can comfortably coexist alongside those of a Ukrainian-European identity.

Ukraine must achieve a lasting, meaningful peace that respects the country's cultural integrity and unity.

It is Europe’s collective responsibility to ensure that the Ukrainian story remains to the fore of our consciousness, long after the latest headlines fade.

In this delicate moment, we hope President Trump realises that peace is not merely the silencing of guns.

It’s the creation of a society where every citizen, whether Ukrainian or Russian-speaking, feels secure, legally-protected, and at home.

That, indeed, would be a ‘Euro-vision’ worth striving for.

Paul Breen is an academic and author.