Ukraine would cede territory to Russia in draft of Trump peace plan
obtained by AP
[November 21, 2025]
By ILLIA NOVIKOV, AAMER MADHANI and CHRIS MEGERIAN
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's plan for ending the war in
Ukraine would cede land to Russia and limit the size of Kyiv's military,
according to a draft obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.
The proposal, originating from negotiations between Washington and
Moscow, appeared decidedly favorable to Russia, which started the war
nearly four years ago by invading its neighbor. If past is prologue, it
would seem untenable for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who
has opposed Trump's previous calls for territorial concessions.
A side agreement aims to satisfy Ukrainian security concerns by saying a
future “significant, deliberate and sustained armed attack” by Russia
would be viewed as “threatening the peace and security of the
transatlantic community.” The agreement, which was detailed by a senior
U.S. official who was not authorized to publicly discuss the matter,
does not obligate the United States or European allies to intervene on
Ukraine's behalf, although it says they would “determine the measures
necessary to restore security.”
Trump's push to end the war could drive a wedge between himself and
European leaders, who are likely to oppose any agreement that could be
seen as rewarding Russian President Vladimir Putin for his aggression,
leaving him emboldened rather than defeated.
For example, the proposal would not only bar Ukraine from joining NATO
but would also prevent the alliance's future expansion. Such a step
would be a significant victory for Moscow, which views NATO as a threat.
Putin would also gain ground he has been unable to win on the
battlefield. Under the draft, Moscow would hold all the eastern Donbas
region, even though approximately 14% still remains in Ukrainian hands.
Ukraine's military, currently at roughly 880,000 troops, would be
reduced to 600,000.
The proposal opens the door to lifting sanctions on Russia and returning
it to what was formerly known as the Group of Eight, which includes many
of the world’s biggest economies. Russia was suspended from the annual
gathering in 2014 following its annexation of Crimea, a strategically
important peninsula on the northern coast of the Black Sea that is
internationally recognized as part of Ukraine.
Proposal increases pressure on Zelenskyy
The U.S. team began drawing up the plan soon after U.S. special envoy
Steve Witkoff held talks with Rustem Umerov, a top adviser to Zelenskyy,
according to a senior administration official who was not authorized to
comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity. The official
added that Umerov agreed to the majority of the plan, after making
several modifications, and then presented it to Zelenskyy.
U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll was also in Kyiv on Thursday and
discussed the latest draft with Zelenskyy, according to a senior
administration official. Zelenskyy offered a measured statement on
social media about it but did not directly speak to the substance of the
proposal.
“Our teams — of Ukraine and the United States — will work on the
provisions of the plan to end the war. We are ready for constructive,
honest and swift work,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, has informed
the White House he’ll leave his post in January, according to two senior
administration officials.
Kellogg was initially named special envoy for Ukraine and Russia during
Trump’s presidential transition. But his role shrunk as Witkoff, a real
estate developer turned diplomat, emerged as the president’s chief
interlocutor with Putin and his advisers.
Trump would oversee compliance with truce
Under the proposal, Russia would commit to making no future attacks,
something the White House views as a concession. In addition, $100
billion in frozen Russian assets would be dedicated to rebuilding
Ukraine.
However, handing over territory to Russia would be deeply unpopular in
Ukraine. It also would be illegal under Ukraine’s constitution.
Zelenskyy has repeatedly ruled out such a possibility.
Russia would also be allowed to keep half of the power generated by
Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, Zaporizhzhia, which it captured
from Ukraine early during the war.
The draft calls for a “Peace Council” that Trump will oversee. The
council is an idea that Trump snatched from his lengthy peace plan aimed
at bringing about a permanent end to war between Israel and Hamas in
Gaza.
If either Ukraine or Russia violated the truce once enacted, it would
face sanctions.
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In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office,
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, talk with U.S.
Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, Nov.
20, 2025. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., an Air Force veteran, rejected the
emerging plan. “Unacceptable,” he posted on social media. “It is a
1938 Munich,” referring to a diplomatic agreement aimed at securing
peace with Nazi Germany but widely viewed as paving the way for
World War II.
European diplomats urge wider consultations
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Witkoff have been quietly working
on the peace plan for a month, receiving input from both Ukrainians
and Russians on terms that are acceptable to each side, White House
press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday. Witkoff and Kirill
Dmitriev, a close adviser to Putin, have been key to drafting the
proposal.
As reports about the draft emerged, blindsided European diplomats
insisted they and Ukraine must be consulted.
European leaders have already been alarmed this year by indications
that Trump’s administration might be sidelining them and Zelenskyy
in its push to stop the fighting. Trump’s at-times conciliatory
approach to Putin has fueled those concerns, but Trump adopted a
tougher line last month when he announced heavy sanctions on
Russia’s vital oil sector that come into force Friday.
“For any plan to work, it needs Ukrainians and Europeans on board,”
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said at the start of
a meeting in Brussels of the 27-nation bloc’s foreign ministers. She
also suggested that the draft would be too favorable toward Moscow.
“We haven’t heard of any concessions on the Russian side," Kallas
said.
German Foreign Minister Johannes Wadephul said he talked by phone
Thursday with Witkoff and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to
discuss “our various current efforts to end Russia’s war of
aggression against Ukraine and thus finally put an end to the
immeasurable human suffering.”
Ukraine’s deputy U.N. Ambassador Khrystyna Hayovyshyn told the U.N.
Security Council that Kyiv has officially received Trump’s draft
peace plan and is ready “to work constructively,” but she stressed
Ukraine’s “red lines.”
“There will never be any recognition, formal or otherwise, of
Ukrainian territory temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation
as Russian,” she said. “Our land is not for sale.”
“Ukraine will not accept any limits on its right to self-defense or
on the size and capabilities of our armed forces, nor will we
tolerate any infringement on our sovereignty, including our
sovereign right to choose the alliances we want to join,” Hayovyshyn
added.
Trump has long pushed for end to war
It was not clear whether European foreign ministers had seen the
peace plan, which was first reported by Axios.
Although they appeared caught by surprise, some elements of the plan
were not new. Trump said last month that the Donbas region should be
“cut up,” leaving most of it in Russian hands.
However, the administration's previous diplomatic efforts this year
to stop the fighting have so far come to nothing. A summit between
Trump and Putin in Alaska did not result in a breakthrough over the
summer, and plans for them to meet again in Budapest, Hungary, did
not come to fruition.
Trump frequently complained that the negotiations involving Ukraine
were taking longer than other conflicts where he helped mediate.
“I thought that was going to be my easy one because I have a good
relationship with President Putin,” he said this week. “But I’m a
little disappointed in President Putin right now.”
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Novikov reported from Kyiv. Associated Press journalists Edith M.
Lederer at the United Nations, Sam McNeil in Brussels, Samya Kullab
in Kyiv and Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed
to this report.
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