The US and Ukraine were set to continue work on Monday on a plan to end the war with Russia after agreeing to modify an earlier proposal widely seen as too favourable to Moscow.
The two sides said in a joint statement they had drafted a “refined peace framework” after talks in Geneva on Sunday, though they did not provide specifics.
The White House separately said the Ukrainian delegation had told them it “reflects their national interests” and “addresses their core strategic requirements”, though Kyiv did not issue its own statement.
It was not clear how the updated plan would handle a host of issues, including how to guarantee Ukraine’s security against ongoing threats from Russia. The US and Ukraine said they would continue “intensive work” ahead of a Thursday deadline, though US secretary of state Marco Rubio, who led the US delegation during the talks, was flying back to Washington late on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump has kept up pressure on Ukraine to reach a deal. On Sunday he said Ukraine had shown “zero gratitude” for US efforts over the war, prompting Ukrainian officials to emphasise their thanks for Trump’s support.
Trump previously set a Thursday deadline for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to accept a peace plan, but Rubio said on Sunday the deadline might not be set in stone.
Zelensky could travel to the US as soon as this week to discuss the most sensitive aspects of the plan with Trump, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The initial 28-point proposal put forth by the US last week called on Ukraine to cede territory, accept limits on its military and abandon its ambitions to join Nato. The terms would amount to capitulation for many Ukrainians after nearly four years of fighting in Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War 2.
The original plan came as a surprise to US officials across the administration, and two sources said on Saturday it was crafted at an October meeting in Miami that included special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Kirill Dmitriev, a Russian envoy who is under US sanctions.
EUROPEAN NATIONS ISSUE COUNTER-PROPOSAL
Democratic lawmakers have criticised it as essentially a Russian wish list, but Rubio has insisted Washington authored the plan with input from the two sides in the war.
European allies said they were not involved in crafting the original plan, and they released a counter-proposal on Sunday that would ease some of the proposed territorial concessions and include a Nato-style security guarantee from the US for Ukraine if it is attacked.
The talks come as Russia has slowly gained ground in some regions, while Ukraine’s power and gas facilities have been pummeled by drone and missile attacks, leaving millions of people without water, heating and power for hours every day.
Zelensky has also been under pressure at home as a major corruption scandal has ensnared some of his ministers, stirring fresh anger about pervasive graft. That has complicated the country’s efforts to secure funding to keep its economy afloat.
Kyiv had taken heart in recent weeks after the US tightened sanctions on Russia’s oil sector, the main source of funding for the war, while its own long-range drone and missile strikes have caused considerable damage to the industry.
Reuters
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