A group of US senators criticised President Donald Trump’s plan to end the Russia-Ukraine war, saying it largely favours Moscow. On Saturday, they said they had spoken with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who told them that the plan Trump wants Ukraine to accept is basically a “wish list” written by the Russians, not the official US proposal, the Financial Times reported.
According to the report, the 28-point plan was made by Trump’s team and the Kremlin without involving Ukraine. It gives in to several demands that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly rejected, including handing over large parts of Ukrainian territory. Trump wants Kyiv to agree to this plan by late next week.
Earlier in the day, the senators warned that following this plan would only boost Russia’s aggression and encourage other countries to threaten their neighbours in the future.
Rubio tells senators it’s not the real US plan
According to a report from the Financial Times, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told several senators that the 28-point peace plan being circulated is not the official US recommendation. Republican Sen. Mike Rounds said Rubio told him directly that “it is not our recommendation. It is not our peace plan.”
Rubio told senators the Russians gave the plan to President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the US passed it on to Ukraine in the role of a go-between. Senator Angus King called the document “essentially the wish list of the Russians.”
Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said they spoke to Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the international security conference in Canada. According to them, Rubio made it clear that the plan circulating publicly does not represent the administration’s position.
Shaheen said Rubio is travelling to Geneva to meet European and Ukrainian officials and had personally reached out to her and Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota. “This is a Russian proposal,” Shaheen said, adding that much of the plan is “totally unacceptable.”
No sign that the US threatened to cut weapons or intelligence
According to FT, Rubio also told the senators he had no knowledge of any threats from the US to withhold weapons or intelligence if Ukraine refused to sign the plan.
Later, a senior US official responded that the plan “was authored by the United States, with input from both the Russians and Ukrainians,” and that it was meant as a hopeful starting point for talks. “As the Administration has consistently maintained, this plan was authored by the United States, with input from both the Russians and Ukrainians. This plan has always been a hopeful start to continued negotiations, and eventually the signing of a final peace agreement once and for all.”
Trump says this isn’t his final offer
Earlier, US President Donald Trump said the proposal was not his final offer to Ukraine. When asked what would happen if President Volodymyr Zelenskyy refused to sign, Trump replied, “he can continue to fight his little heart out.”
The “peace plan” would ask Ukraine to give up territory in parts of Donetsk that it now controls and would limit the size of Ukraine’s armed forces. US lawmakers, including Republicans and many officials in Europe and Ukraine, worry the deal could force Kyiv to accept terms that heavily favour Moscow.
