Talks aimed at finalizing a U.S.-proposed peace plan to resolve the Russia-Ukraine war have achieved “a tremendous amount of progress,” according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
However, Rubio stated that “there’s still some work to be done” following a meeting with Ukrainian and European negotiators in Geneva, Switzerland.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky commented that there were “signals that President [Donald] Trump’s team is hearing us.”
Ukraine and its European allies had previously voiced concerns regarding leaked proposals, which were perceived as favoring Russia and were welcomed by Vladimir Putin as “the basis” for a settlement. Zelensky had warned that Ukraine “might face a very difficult choice: either losing dignity, or risk losing a key partner.”
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Rubio described the negotiating teams in Geneva as having had a “very good day.”
He explained that the primary objective was to narrow down “open items” from the 28-point U.S. plan, and the involved parties had achieved this to a “substantial” degree.
The top U.S. diplomat added, however, that any final agreement would require approval from both the Ukrainian and U.S. presidents before being presented to Russia, and that certain issues still require further attention.
Several media outlets have reported seeing an alternative plan from Kyiv’s European allies, led by the UK, France, and Germany. The BBC has not independently verified the existence of this document, and Rubio denied any knowledge of it.
Earlier on Sunday, President Trump accused Ukrainian leaders of demonstrating “zero gratitude” for U.S. efforts to end the conflict.
He also highlighted that Europe, home to some of Kyiv’s strongest allies, continues to purchase oil from Russia.
Moscow relies heavily on oil and gas exports to finance its ongoing war in Ukraine.
The Geneva talks are centered on the U.S. draft plan, the leaked version of which proposes a Ukrainian troop withdrawal from the portion of the eastern Donetsk region currently under their control. It also addresses the de facto Russian control of Donetsk, the neighboring Luhansk region, and the southern Crimea peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
The plan reportedly involves freezing the borders of Ukraine’s southern Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions along the existing battle lines, with both regions partially occupied by Russia.
Furthermore, the U.S. plan reportedly limits Ukraine’s military to 600,000 personnel, a reduction from the current 880,000.
Critically, the draft includes a pledge from Ukraine not to seek NATO membership. Instead, Kyiv would receive “reliable security guarantees,” the details of which remain unspecified.
The document suggests that “it is expected” that Russia will refrain from invading its neighbors and that NATO will not expand further.
The draft also proposes the “reintegration” of Russia into the global economy through the lifting of sanctions and an invitation for Russia to rejoin the G7 group of leading world economies, effectively restoring it to the G8.
Russia currently controls approximately 20% of Ukrainian territory, with its troops making slow advances along the front line despite reported heavy losses.
President Trump has reportedly set a deadline of this Thursday for Ukraine to agree to the proposals.
However, he subsequently clarified that this was not his “final offer” for Kyiv, following concerns voiced by Ukraine’s European, Canadian, and Japanese allies.
Secretary Rubio told reporters on Sunday that he was “very optimistic that we’re going to get there in a very reasonable period of time very soon,” regardless of whether it was by Thursday, later in the week, or the following Monday.
The plan contains 28 key points, and while several may be acceptable to Ukraine, others reportedly cross Kyiv’s established red lines.
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