Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is facing a "very difficult" choice.
As reported by "Hvylya", this is the subject of a report by The Washington Post.
The Trump administration is intensifying its efforts to reach a peace agreement in Ukraine this Sunday, with U.S. special envoys heading to Geneva to meet with Zelensky. Despite widespread skepticism, officials maintain that the talks will be flexible rather than a directive to Kyiv.
Senior U.S. officials close to the negotiations revealed on Saturday that the administration acknowledges "security guarantees are not yet strong enough" in Trump's 28-point peace proposal. For instance, Trump may raise or completely eliminate the proposed 600,000-person cap on the Ukrainian army. Furthermore, to bolster post-war deterrence, the provision of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine is being considered should a peace deal be reached.
"Ukraine’s sovereignty can never be compromised. That would open the floodgates in Europe," a key official stated on Saturday.
He explained that the U.S. "does not want to see the collapse of Ukraine," describing such a scenario as "the second coming of Yugoslavia," the 1991 breakup of which sparked a decade of regional conflicts. Critics of Trump's peace initiative argue that it would reward Moscow and undermine Ukrainian sovereignty in precisely the way the officials interviewed claim they wish to avoid.
The official stated that, contrary to some reports, the Trump administration is "100 percent" committed to continuing U.S. intelligence support for Ukraine. He asserted that the 28-point plan was "ambitious" and open for negotiation. Trump's public comments have been less reassuring. On Friday, he spoke of a Thanksgiving deadline, but on Saturday denied that the 28 points represented a final "take it or leave it" offer.
Disclaimer: The American officials spoke to the journalist because they wanted to convince Europeans, Ukrainians, and Americans that Trump's peace proposal is not as pro-Russian as it might appear. However, Zelensky will be the ultimate judge of that. If he approves the deal, the burden shifts to Moscow. If he rejects it, the war will likely continue into next year and beyond.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff were scheduled to fly to Geneva on Saturday evening to meet with the Ukrainian leader. If Zelensky agrees to a framework for negotiations, Witkoff will then take it to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, though likely not immediately.
This account of the negotiations is based on conversations with two U.S. officials who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the talks. It is corroborated by conversations with European officials and sources familiar with discussions inside Zelensky's government.
According to officials, this peace initiative was sparked by a sense that recent battlefield setbacks in the Donetsk region and a corruption scandal in Kyiv have brought Ukraine to a tipping point. Russia, meanwhile, is feeling growing economic pressure and may prefer ending the war to continuing the fight for the two years it might take to fully capture Donetsk.
The model for Trump's Ukraine efforts is his successful pressure for a ceasefire in Gaza. Officials compare the current moment in Ukraine to the opportunity created by Israel's September bombing of Hamas officials in Qatar, which broke a stalemate. Turkey has played a key role as an intermediary with the Ukrainians, just as it did with Hamas in previous negotiations.
This negotiation process began nearly a month ago, when U.S. officials started drafting a new framework in consultation with Russian, European, and Ukrainian contacts. Efforts ramped up last weekend after a high-ranking Turkish official informed Witkoff that Rustem Umerov, Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, was ready to meet him in Florida.
According to U.S. officials, Umerov said at the meeting in Florida that Zelensky might be willing to compromise on a crucial issue—trading territory in the Donetsk region for a peace agreement, a key Russian demand. Umerov also stated that Ukraine might be prepared to limit its army to 600,000 personnel, officials reported. After this cap sparked a storm of protest on Friday, an official said it could be raised or scrapped entirely—since it does not actually affect the manpower balance, which heavily favors Russia regardless.
U.S. special envoys acknowledge that security guarantees are a critical issue for securing Ukrainian and European support. Russia will not yield in its opposition to European troops in Ukraine serving as a "deterrent force" after a ceasefire. Instead, American officials are viewing the offer of Tomahawks for Ukraine as an alternative. Officials are confident Ukraine would not use them preemptively against Russia, as doing so would cost it U.S. and European support.
Due to Ukraine's political instability, U.S. officials included a proposal for national elections in Ukraine within 100 days of signing the agreement, which would effectively mean public ratification or rejection of the deal. They also added a post-war amnesty clause at Ukraine's request to reassure Zelensky and members of his government that they will not face prosecution should the current corruption scandal expand.
The draft agreement calls for Ukraine to withdraw from roughly the 25 percent of Donetsk it currently controls, satisfying a key Russian demand. To reassure Ukraine that it will be safe behind the ceasefire line, the U.S. draft states that this withdrawal zone must be demilitarized. Additionally, a U.S. official said Saturday that the U.S. and its allies would help Ukraine build a security "wall" along the ceasefire line using advanced technology.
Zelensky's initial reaction to the new peace initiative was to suggest a ceasefire on energy infrastructure targets instead. U.S. officials thought Moscow might accept this, given it has already so severely damaged the Ukrainian power grid. However, the Russians replied that such an approach was "unacceptable," the official said.
Zelensky now faces the most difficult choice of his presidency. If he says "yes" to giving up Donetsk, some Ukrainians will never forgive him. If he says "no," this tragic war will continue. For all of Zelensky's courage, he has perhaps never faced such an agonizing moment.
Note that the alleged text of the document contains 28 points, specifically including:
- enshrining the refusal to join NATO in the Constitution of Ukraine;
- maintaining Ukraine's non-nuclear status;
- limiting the size of the Ukrainian army to 600,000 personnel;
- recognition of Crimea, the DPR, and the LPR as Russian territories;
- lifting sanctions on Russia and its return to the G8.
Previously, Graham said he would give Ukraine Trump's peace plan.
