The United States, Ukraine and Russia are inching closer toward a potential peace deal, but leaders are holding their breath as modifications to the proposal are underway to get it across the finish line before the war reaches the four-year mark.
President Donald Trump cautioned on Monday that he didn’t want people to “believe it until you see it” after headlines over the weekend focused on the progress made between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
“Is it really possible that big progress is being made in Peace Talks between Russia and Ukraine??? Don’t believe it until you see it, but something good just may be happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!” Trump shared on Truth Social.
Here’s where things are at in the war-torn region:
Trump plan mirrors Gaza peace proposal
Last week, the Trump administration presented a 28-point plan seeking to end the yearslong war. It sparked concern, including among European leaders, as the plan appeared to favor Russia.
The plan would give Putin the ground it has taken from neighboring Ukraine since the start of the war, including the eastern Donbas region. In the past, Zelenskyy has vehemently pushed back against the idea of conceding land to Russia and anything that would limit the size of his army.
The proposal also would have banned Ukraine from joining NATO and prevented the group from future expansion. It would be a significant victory for Russia, which has wanted to stop additional countries from joining the military alliance, The Associated Press reported.
It also would have caused tension with European leaders, who do not want to give such agreements to Putin, who launched the invasion into Ukraine in February 2022. Putin could also see the possibility of sanctions on Russia being lifted as part of the proposed plan and the revival of a pre-2014 agreement known as the Group of Eight.
The plan would have Russia commit no future attacks on Ukraine, a key goal in Trump’s mission to achieve peace in the conflict. Russia would also pledge $100 billion to rebuilding the war-torn country, the AP noted.
Trump, like in the Israel-Hamas peace proposal in Gaza, would oversee a “Peace Council.”
Bipartisan and international pushback
While the first leaked draft sparked concern in Kyiv and across Europe, U.S. and Ukrainian officials met over the weekend to discuss modifications to the proposal. The plan also earned pushback from U.S. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
Zelenskyy on social media acknowledged the Trump administration’s 28-point plan and said that, from the start, Ukraine has been straightforward in its mission to achieve peace.
“A real peace — one that will not be broken by a third invasion. A dignified peace — with terms that respect our independence, our sovereignty, and the dignity of the Ukrainian people. And it is exactly such terms that we must secure,” he said in a video.
Zelenskyy said he expects to speak with world leaders and Trump in the coming days.
He received the support of many international leaders, including Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who said the negotiations to end the war were a step forward, but there were still “major issues.”
French President Emmanuel Macron, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer and others weighed in to show support for Zelenskyy. They say they value Trump’s efforts to end the war, but are reviewing the document to ensure that it’s a plan that can give Ukraine “real and dignified peace.”
Several other world leaders, including President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, shared a message saying that they welcome the U.S. efforts to end the war, but the draft requires “additional work” and that it is concerning how limiting the proposal is on Ukraine.
The plan has also drawn criticism from U.S. lawmakers.
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., an Air Force veteran, said the plan was “unacceptable” and referred to a Nazi Germany-era deal that led to World War II. In the days since the proposal was shared, Bacon has continuously criticized the deal, arguing that it’s hurt the United States’ standing with European allies and said Trump should not trust Putin and weaken Ukraine in the process.
The future of the plan
Ukrainian and U.S. teams met in Geneva over the weekend to continue negotiations and Zelenskyy said he knows the conversations can be “constructive.”
Rubio: Talks to end Ukraine-Russia war ongoing
Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared Monday that after discussions in Geneva over the weekend, a “tremendous amount of progress” had been made with Ukrainian officials. Rubio shared that the proposal had been several weeks in the making, and the “foundational document” has been an “ongoing working document.”
Rubio shared that he and Ukrainian leaders hammered out some of the open-ended details in the proposal, but it will still need approval from all involved presidents.
“I think today was very worthwhile,” he said. “It was probably the most productive day we have had on this issue — maybe in the entirety of our engagement, but certainly in a very long time.”
“I don’t want to declare victory or finality here, there’s still some work to be done, but we are much further ahead today at this time than where we began this morning and where we were a week ago for certain,” Rubio continued.
The talks come as Russia continues its bombardment of Ukraine. At least four were killed in a large Russian drone attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, officials said, per Reuters.