Talks to discuss a U.S.-proposed peace plan to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine got underway in Geneva on Sunday, Ukrainian officials said.
The head of the Ukrainian delegation, presidential chief of staff Andrii Yermak, wrote on social media that they held their first meeting with national security advisers from the U.K., France and Germany.
“The next meeting is with the U.S. delegation. We are in a very constructive mood,” Yermak said. “We continue working together to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined the talks together with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on Telegram that he was waiting for the outcome of the talks.
“A positive result is needed for all of us,” he said. “Ukrainian and American teams, teams of our European partners – are in close contact, and I very much hope there will be a result. Bloodshed must be stopped and it must be guaranteed that the war will not be reignited.”
In a later post, Zelenskyy said there was an understanding that the U.S. would take into account “a number of elements” in a peace deal that are important for Ukraine, but did not elaborate further.
“There have already been brief reports from the team about the results of the first meetings and conversations,” he said. “There is now an understanding that the American proposals may take into account a number of elements based on the Ukrainian vision and are critically important for Ukraine’s national interests.”
The 28-point blueprint drawn up by the U.S. sparked alarm in Kyiv and across Europe, quickly rallying Western allies around Ukraine in a push to revise the plan, which is seen as favoring Moscow. They said in a joint statement on Saturday that while the plan “includes important elements that will be essential for a just and lasting peace,” additional work is required.
Zelenskyy, himself, said on Friday that his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the U.S. support it needs.
The plan acquiesces to many of Russia’s demands that Ukraine has categorically rejected on dozens of occasions, including giving up large pieces of territory. President Trump said Friday that he wants Ukraine to accept the plan by late next week.
Speaking before Sunday’s talks, Alice Rufo, France’s minister delegate at the Defense Ministry, told broadcaster France Info that key points of discussion would include the plan’s restrictions on the Ukrainian army, which she described as “a limitation on its sovereignty.”
“Ukraine must be able to defend itself,” she said. “Russia wants war and waged war many times in fact over the past years.”
Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Saturday, Mr. Trump said the U.S. proposal was not his “final offer.”
“I would like to get to peace. It should have happened a long time ago. The Ukraine war with Russia should have never happened,” Mr. Trump said. “One way or the other, we have to get it ended.”
Mr. Trump didn’t explain what he meant by the plan not being his final offer and the White House didn’t respond to a request for clarification.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Mr. Trump said the Ukraine-Russia war is “a violent and terrible one that, with strong and proper U.S. and Ukrainian LEADERSHIP, would have NEVER HAPPENED.”
“I INHERITED A WAR THAT SHOULD HAVE NEVER HAPPENED, A WAR THAT IS A LOSER FOR EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY THE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE SO NEEDLESSLY DIED. UKRAINE ‘LEADERSHIP’ HAS EXPRESSED ZERO GRATITUDE FOR OUR EFFORTS, AND EUROPE CONTINUES TO BUY OIL FROM RUSSIA,” he wrote. “THE USA CONTINUES TO SELL MASSIVE $AMOUNTS OF WEAPONS TO NATO, FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UKRAINE (CROOKED JOE GAVE EVERYTHING, FREE, FREE, FREE, INCLUDING “BIG” MONEY!). GOD BLESS ALL THE LIVES THAT HAVE BEEN LOST IN THE HUMAN CATASTROPHE! President DJT”
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday that Warsaw was ready to work on the plan with the leaders of Europe, Canada and Japan, but also said that it “would be good to know for sure who is the author of the plan and where was it created.”
Some U.S. lawmakers said Saturday that Rubio had described the plan as a Russian “wish list” rather than a Washington-led proposal.
The bipartisan group of senators held a news conference, stating that they had spoken with Rubio about the peace plan after he reached out to some of them while en route to Geneva. Independent Maine Sen. Angus King said Rubio told them the plan “was not the administration’s plan” but a “wish list of the Russians.”
Rubio on Saturday night rejected the claims, writing in a social media post that, “The peace proposal was authored by the U.S. It is offered as a strong framework for ongoing negotiations. It is based on input from the Russian side. But it is also based on previous and ongoing input from Ukraine.”
State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott denied their account, calling it “blatantly false.”
“As Secretary Rubio and the entire Administration has consistently maintained, this plan was authored by the United States, with input from both the Russians and Ukrainians,” he posted on social media.
A senior U.S. official told CBS News in a statement Saturday night that the Trump administration has “consistently maintained” that the peace plan was authored by the U.S. with input from Russia and Ukraine.
“This plan has always been a hopeful start to continued negotiations, and eventually the signing of a final peace agreement once and for all,” the statement said.
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