It could be a pivotal moment for the nearly four-year war in Ukraine. The Trump administration has a new peace proposal, but critics contend it’s too favorable to Russia.U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he wants an answer from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by Thursday, but he didn’t rule out an extension to finalize the terms. Asked if the U.S. will pull back support if Zelenskyy doesn’t accept the plan, Trump told reporters, “Well, at some point he’s going to have to accept something.” “You remember, right, in the Oval Office, not so long ago. I said you don’t have the cards,” Trump added, referencing the tense meeting between the two leaders back in February. The 28-point plan envisions several concessions from Ukraine, including shrinking its army, handing over territory to Russia, and ruling out a path to NATO membership. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the plan “could form the basis of a final peace settlement.” He accused Ukraine of being unrealistic. The proposal is facing harsh criticism from some Republicans, including Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY). “Putin has spent the entire year trying to play President Trump for a fool,” McConnell wrote in a statement. “If Administration officials are more concerned with appeasing Putin than securing real peace, then the President ought to find new advisors. Rewarding Russian butchery would be disastrous to America’s interests.”In a video address on Friday, Zelenskyy described the situation as one of the most difficult moments in their history. “Ukraine may now face a very difficult choice: either the loss of dignity, or the risk of losing a key partner,” Zelenskyy said.In a social media post later, Zelenskyy said he spoke for almost an hour with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll about the peace proposal.”We agreed to work together with the U.S. and Europe at the level of national security advisors to make the path to peace truly doable,” Zelenskyy said. “Ukraine has always respected and continues to respect U.S. President Donald Trump’s desire to put an end to the bloodshed, and we view every realistic proposal positively.”On Friday night, Vance wrote on social media that any peace plan must be acceptable to both sides, preserve Ukrainian sovereignty, and maximize the chances that the war doesn’t restart. “Every criticism of the peace framework the administration is working on either misunderstands the framework or misstates some critical reality on the ground,” Vance said. “There is a fantasy that if we just give more money, more weapons, or more sanctions, victory is at hand.”
It could be a pivotal moment for the nearly four-year war in Ukraine. The Trump administration has a new peace proposal, but critics contend it’s too favorable to Russia.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he wants an answer from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by Thursday, but he didn’t rule out an extension to finalize the terms.
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Asked if the U.S. will pull back support if Zelenskyy doesn’t accept the plan, Trump told reporters, “Well, at some point he’s going to have to accept something.”
“You remember, right, in the Oval Office, not so long ago. I said you don’t have the cards,” Trump added, referencing the tense meeting between the two leaders back in February.
The 28-point plan envisions several concessions from Ukraine, including shrinking its army, handing over territory to Russia, and ruling out a path to NATO membership.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the plan “could form the basis of a final peace settlement.” He accused Ukraine of being unrealistic.
The proposal is facing harsh criticism from some Republicans, including Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
“Putin has spent the entire year trying to play President Trump for a fool,” McConnell wrote in a statement. “If Administration officials are more concerned with appeasing Putin than securing real peace, then the President ought to find new advisors. Rewarding Russian butchery would be disastrous to America’s interests.”
In a video address on Friday, Zelenskyy described the situation as one of the most difficult moments in their history.
“Ukraine may now face a very difficult choice: either the loss of dignity, or the risk of losing a key partner,” Zelenskyy said.
In a social media post later, Zelenskyy said he spoke for almost an hour with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll about the peace proposal.
“We agreed to work together with the U.S. and Europe at the level of national security advisors to make the path to peace truly doable,” Zelenskyy said. “Ukraine has always respected and continues to respect U.S. President Donald Trump’s desire to put an end to the bloodshed, and we view every realistic proposal positively.”
On Friday night, Vance wrote on social media that any peace plan must be acceptable to both sides, preserve Ukrainian sovereignty, and maximize the chances that the war doesn’t restart.
“Every criticism of the peace framework the administration is working on either misunderstands the framework or misstates some critical reality on the ground,” Vance said. “There is a fantasy that if we just give more money, more weapons, or more sanctions, victory is at hand.”
