US-Russia secret plan to end Ukraine war: Another Trump-Putin summit soon?

US and Russian officials have secretly drafted a plan to end the war in Ukraine , which involves measures that Kyiv might not like. While Russia is downplaying the plans, Ukrainian officials are expressing concerns over the matter.

Multiple news outlets suggested that the plan in question would require Ukraine to surrender territory and severely limit the size of its military. The reports of the secret plan came on the same day that Russian drone and missile strikes killed at least 25 people in the city of Ternopil.

According to reports by Reuters and The Financial Times, the draft plan was prepared by US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and the Kremlin adviser Kirill Dmitriev. The reports suggested that the plan would force draconian measures on Ukraine that would give Russia unprecedented control over the country’s military and political sovereignty.

As per the report, the two men formed an " important but unofficial backchannel between Moscow and Washington". However, it is unclear if the Trump administration is formally backing the plan, given Trump’s recent threats to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

How Russia and Ukraine are reacting to the plans

After the reports of the 28-point plan by Witkoff and Dmitriev started to swirl headlines, the Kremlin denied the reports that Russia is holding secret talks with the Trump administration over ending the war in Ukraine.

On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied the Axios report that claimed that US officials had drawn a plan consisting of “security guarantees, security in Europe, and future US relations with Russia and Ukraine”.

Peskov maintained that while no talks had been held with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, he is still welcome to visit Moscow. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials told Reuters that Kyiv received “signals” about a set of US proposals to end the war.

The official made it clear that Ukraine was not involved in the proposal. Interestingly, Witkoff is expected to meet Zelenskyy later on Wednesday in Turkey.

Peace at what cost

The proposal would reportedly require Ukraine to cede territory it controls in the east of the country and halve the size of its military , conditions that the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has in the past described as non-starters. Some of the other conditions include limiting US military assistance and categories of armaments used by the Ukrainian military.

The existence of the 28-point plan was first reported by Axios and appeared to be inspired by a similar proposal the Trump administration developed to end the war in Gaza. However, there have been no indications from the White House that such a plan is in play. But Washington has repeatedly suggested that it is close to a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

US lawmakers rattled

The reports of the existence of the 28-point plan to end the Ukraine war have caught the US Congress off guard and left at least one Republican warning against what appears to be a largely pro-Moscow proposal. Ukraine’s top supporters in Congress appeared to be in the dark about the existence of such channels.

“I don’t know what this 28-point plan is. I’m glad that we’re coming up with a plan,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a top Trump ally and hawkish supporter of Kyiv, said during an event Wednesday morning hosted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. However, he maintained that the plan must be buoyed by strong US military commitments to Ukraine.

Other lawmakers claimed that they learnt about the plans only through media reports. “I just heard about it but have not seen any of the details,” Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) told reporters Wednesday. “I have not been read in on the details of that,” said Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Europe and Regional Security Cooperation. Hence, the controversial plan has been drawing backlash and surprise from American lawmakers.