“Enormous progress” has been made in talks to finalize a proposed US peace plan to end the war between Russia and Ukraine, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
But “there is still work to be done,” Rubio said after meeting with Ukrainian and European negotiators in Geneva, Switzerland.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said there were “signs that President [Donald] “The Trump team is listening to us.”
Ukraine and its European allies had expressed concern about the leaked proposals, seen as favorable to Russia and welcomed by Vladimir Putin as “the basis” for an agreement. Zelensky had said Ukraine “could face a very difficult choice: lose dignity or risk losing a key partner.”
Speaking to reporters Sunday night, Rubio said the negotiating teams in Geneva had had a “very good day.”
He said the main objective had been to try to reduce the “outstanding points” of the US 28-point plan, and the parties involved had achieved this “substantially”.
However, America’s top diplomat added that any final deal would have to be agreed by the presidents of Ukraine and the United States – before the package was sent to Russia – and that there were still a couple of issues they needed to continue working on.
Several media outlets reported that they had seen an alternative plan from kyiv’s European allies, led by the United Kingdom, France and Germany. The BBC has not seen the document and Rubio denied knowledge of its existence.
Earlier on Sunday, Trump accused Ukraine’s leaders of showing “no gratitude” for the United States’ efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
The US president also noted that Europe – where kyiv has some of its strongest allies – was still buying oil from Russia.
Moscow relies heavily on its oil and gas exports to continue financing its war in Ukraine.
The Geneva talks focus on the US draft, the leaked version of which includes a withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the part of the eastern Donetsk region they currently control, and de facto Russian control of Donetsk, as well as the neighboring Luhansk region, as well as the southern Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.
The plan also includes freezing the borders of the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine along the current battle lines. Both regions are partially occupied by Russia.
The US plan also limits Ukraine’s military to 600,000 troops, down from 880,000 currently.
Crucially, the draft includes a promise that Ukraine will not seek NATO membership. Instead, kyiv would receive “reliable security guarantees” about which no details have been given.
The document says it is “expected” that Russia will not invade its neighbors and that NATO will not expand further.
The draft also suggests that Russia will be “reintegrated into the global economy,” by lifting sanctions and inviting Russia to rejoin the G7 group of the world’s most powerful countries, making it the G8 again.
Russia currently controls around 20% of Ukrainian territory and its troops have been advancing slowly along the vast frontline, despite reported heavy losses.
Trump has given Ukraine until next Thursday to agree on the proposals.
But he later said this was not his “final offer” for kyiv, after Ukraine’s allies in Europe, Canada and Japan raised concerns.
And Rubio told reporters on Sunday that he was “very optimistic that we will get there in a very soon period of time,” whether it be Thursday, other days or Monday of next week.
