U.S. and Ukraine Refine Peace Framework as Geneva Talks Continue

Reuters

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, address the media after closed-door talks at the U.S. Mission in Geneva 23 November 2025.

The United States and Ukraine continued negotiations in Switzerland on Monday in an effort to produce a mutually acceptable peace plan, following agreement to revise the U.S. proposal that Kyiv and several European allies had criticised as resembling a Kremlin wish list.

In a joint statement, Washington and Kyiv confirmed they had drafted a “refined peace framework” after the first day of talks in Geneva, though no details were disclosed.

The original 28-point plan, presented unexpectedly last week, gave Ukraine until Thursday to accept a framework aimed at ending Europe’s deadliest conflict since the Second World War. The proposal caught Ukrainian and European officials off guard.

No public clarification has yet been offered regarding key issues, including future security guarantees for Ukraine, protection against renewed Russian aggression, and the financing of reconstruction efforts. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said negotiations were ongoing, while the Kremlin stated it had received no official communication on the revised plan.

Addressing a separate summit of Ukraine’s allies in Sweden via video link, Zelenskiy stressed the need for compromises that “strengthen but do not weaken” Ukraine.

He reiterated that Russia must be made to pay for the destruction caused by the war, emphasising that a decision on frozen Russian assets remained “crucial”.

“We are at a critical moment,” he said, “and we are working with the United States, European partners, and many others to define steps that can end Russia’s war against Ukraine and bring real security.”

U.S. President Donald Trump has continued to push for a swift settlement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who led the U.S. delegation on Sunday, suggested the Thursday deadline might not be absolute.

The initial U.S. framework called for Ukraine to cede additional territory, limit its military capability, and abandon aspirations for NATO membership—long-standing Russian demands firmly rejected by both Kyiv and the Ukrainian public.

European allies, excluded from the drafting of the original U.S. plan, issued a counter-proposal that would soften territorial concessions while offering NATO-style US security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of future attacks.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow was monitoring reports but had received “nothing official”.

EU leaders are expected to discuss Ukraine on the sidelines of the EU–African Union summit in Luanda on Monday, with additional participants joining remotely.

Source: Reuters



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