U.S. President Donald Trump has unveiled a 28-point plan for peace in Ukraine, forcing Ukraine to give up territory in the east, limiting its military, and agreeing to never join NATO. This latest development in the Russo-Ukraine War brings fresh hope of a pragmatic pathway for peace in the region. 

The deal has been welcomed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and met with skepticism by Ukraine’s President Volodymr Zelenskyy. As Tim Balmforth and Olena Harmash have found ‘Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that U.S. proposals for peace in Ukraine could be the basis of a resolution of the conflict but that if Kyiv turned down the plan then Russian forces would advance further. U.S. President Donald Trump said he was giving Ukraine until Thursday to accept a U.S. peace plan which endorses key Russian demands on NATO, territory and recognition of Russian controlled regions. "I believe that it can be used as the basis for a final peaceful settlement," Putin told senior officials at a meeting of the Russian Security Council, which is like a modern-day politburo of Russia's most powerful officials. Putin added that the 28-point plan had not been discussed in detail yet with the United States, but that Moscow had received a copy of it. Putin said that Ukraine was against the plan but that neither Kyiv nor European powers understood the reality that Russian forces were advancing in Ukraine and would continue to advance unless there was peace … President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday Ukraine faced losing its dignity and freedom or Washington's support over the U.S. peace plan. Putin said that Russia had discussed Trump's peace plan before their August summit in Alaska, and that Moscow had made compromises as requested by Washington.’ (Reuters.2025) As the authors have found, Putin believes the U.S. peace proposals for Ukraine could serve as a basis for ending the conflict, however, he warned that Russian forces would keep advancing if Ukraine rejected the plans. The plan, backed by U.S. President Donald Trump, includes major concessions to Russia on NATO and territory, and has been strongly opposed by Ukraine. Putin claimed Russia had already made compromises during earlier talks, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy argued the proposal forces Ukraine to choose between its dignity and U.S. support.

Although the U.S. peace plan has shown promise, Ukraine’s allies have rallied behind the nation to counter what they perceive as a ‘non-starter’. As Tim Ross notes, ‘Ukraine’s staunchest allies held emergency talks on the sidelines of the G20 summit in South Africa in an attempt to stop Donald Trump forcing Kyiv to hand swathes of territory to Russia in an unbalanced peace deal. Western governments were privately shocked and dismayed at the new 28-point outline for a peace deal from the U.S. president’s team this week, seeing it as an attempt to force Ukraine to give Vladimir Putin everything he wants. European leaders are now frantically working up counter-proposals to put to Trump in an effort to mitigate the worst of the U.S. plan, according to multiple officials familiar with the matter, granted anonymity to speak candidly. More than a dozen leaders including Germany’s Friedrich Merz, France’s Emmanuel Macron, the U.K.’s Keir Starmer, the EU’s Ursula von der Leyen, Finland’s Alexander Stubb and Canada’s Mark Carney met for an urgent discussion at the G20 summit in Johannesburg to coordinate their response with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. “The draft is a basis which will require additional work,” the leaders said in a joint statement after discussing Trump’s plan. “We are clear on the principle that borders must not be changed by force. We are also concerned by the proposed limitations on Ukraine’s armed forces, which would leave Ukraine vulnerable to future attack.” The leaders reiterated the “strength” of their continued support for Ukraine and insisted that any provisions in a peace deal that affected the EU or NATO would require proper “consent” from the members of these multinational blocs. Ukraine intends to hold high-level talks with U.S. officials in Switzerland in the coming days, according to Rustem Umerov, secretary of the Ukrainian national defense and security council. The main aim of Ukraine’s friends is to strengthen Zelenskyy’s position and ensure he has their public backing for whatever comes next. While none of Ukraine’s allies has been involved in drafting Trump’s plan or has said they think it is fair, they took care not to reject the 28-point blueprint outright, for fear of antagonizing the unpredictable American president. (Politico.2025) As Ross has affirmed, Ukraine’s allies met at the G20 summit to counter the U.S. peace plan which they believe would force Ukraine to surrender overwhelming territory and military capability to Russia. European leaders are drafting alternative proposals to limit the plan’s impact while publicly supporting Ukraine and avoiding a direct confrontation with President Trump.

Global diplomacy will decide the prospect of peace in Ukraine. Whether this plan brings stability or deepens division will depend on balancing Ukrainian sovereignty with the pressure of the competing powers involved.