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Donald Trump maintains the plan is not final, but wants Kyiv to respond next week
Namita Singh,Bryony GoochSunday 23 November 2025 11:00 GMTComments
CloseStarmer says he 'expects to talk to Trump in the coming days' on US peace plan for Ukraine
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US secretary of state Marco Rubio and US special envoy Steve Witkoff have arrived in Geneva to discuss Washington's draft plan to end the war in Ukraine, a US official said.
It comes as US senators have accused Donald Trump of advancing a Ukraine peace proposal that reflects Russian priorities, a claim rejected by US secretary of state Marco Rubio and the State Department.
Senators Angus King, Jeanne Shaheen and Mike Rounds told reporters at a security forum in Canada that Rubio privately described the 28-point document as a Russian “wish list” and “not the administration’s plan” during calls he made while travelling to Geneva for talks.
Senator Rounds said the text “looked more like it was written in Russian to begin with”, insisting: “This administration was not responsible for this release in its current form. They want to utilise it as a starting point.”
A State Department spokesperson called the senators’ account “blatantly false”.
Rubio later wrote on X that Washington had authored the proposal, saying it served as “a strong framework for ongoing negotiations”, drawing on input from both Moscow and Kyiv.
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Key Points
- Western leaders say Ukraine plan needs work, Trump signals scope for changes
- Trump gives Ukraine a tight deadline
- Ukraine’s allies rally around Zelensky ahead of crunch talks as Trump offers lifeline to Kyiv
- US senators say Rubio told them Trump's Ukraine peace plan is Russia's 'wish list'
- What happens next?
Reform UK admit there are 'concerns' around Trump's peace plan
Reform UK's head of policy Zia Yusuf said there are some concerns about Donald Trump's peace plan to end the Russia-Ukraine war and the "initial reaction we have is that too much appears to be being given to Vladimir Putin".
Asked about the US president's peace plan, he told Sky News's Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programme: "Well, look, as Nigel told the Telegraph on Friday, there are some concerns, I think, about this and we're going to wait and see what the Ukrainian, the formal Ukrainian response is.
"But I think ultimately, the most important stakeholder with regards to Ukraine sovereignty are the Ukrainians themselves.
"I think the initial reaction we have is that too much appears to be being given to Vladimir Putin, which we're concerned about.
"But again, the most important stakeholder in Ukraine's sovereignty, as we just heard, are the Ukrainians themselves."
Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 11:00Russia claims new territory in Donetsk and Kharkiv - Reports
Russia’s Defence Ministry has said its forces have taken control of Petrivske in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, as well as Tikhe and Odradne in Kharkiv.
The Independent could not verify these reports.
Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 10:38What is in Trump’s 28-point plan to end the war in Ukraine?
Russia back in G8, no Nato for Ukraine: What is in Trump’s 28-point plan to end war?
Volodymyr Zelensky said he would speak to Donald Trump in the coming days to work on the planBryony Gooch23 November 2025 10:20Trump team arrives in Geneva for talks to end war
US secretary of state Marco Rubio and US special envoy Steve Witkoff have arrived in Geneva for talks on Sunday to discuss Washington's draft plan to end the war in Ukraine, a US official said.
(REUTERS)Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 10:10In pictures: Communal workers clean an area near an apartment building damaged during a Russian drone strike on Dnipro
(REUTERS)
(REUTERS)Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 10:00Recap: US insist peace plan is Russian 'wish list'
US politicians critical of Donald Trump's approach to ending the Russia-Ukraine war have said Secretary of State Marco Rubio told them the peace plan the president is pushing Kyiv to accept is a "wish list" of the Russians and not the actual proposal offering Washington's position.
A State Department spokesperson denied their account, calling it "blatantly false".
Mr Rubio himself then took the extraordinary step of suggesting online that the senators were mistaken, even though they said he was their source for the information. The secretary of state doubled down on the assertion that Washington was responsible for a proposal that had surprised many from the beginning for being so favourable to Moscow.
Gazapremium (AFP/Getty)Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 09:38UK's voice 'does count' with Washington
Heidi Alexander has repeatedly declined to answer questions on whether Donald Trump consulted the UK on his 28-point peace plan to end the Russia-Ukraine war, but she insisted the UK's voice "does count" with Washington.
The transport secretary told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips on Sky News: "I think it does count with them.
"If you listen to some of the comments of (US secretary of state) Marco Rubio, when he was talking about the role that (UK national security adviser) Jonathan Powell played in discussions about securing a ceasefire in Gaza in the Middle East, he spoke very highly and very positively of the role that the UK played in that.
"So I think our relationship with the US is one of seeking to influence to facilitate that dialogue with other global leaders, which is exactly what the Prime Minister was doing when he was in Johannesburg at the G20 yesterday."
Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 09:30Ukrainians need to determine their own future, says Transport Secretary
The UK’s “fundamental view” is that Ukrainians need to determine their own future, a Cabinet minister has said as meetings are due to take place in Geneva on Donald Trump’s 28-point peace plan.
Transport secretary Heidi Alexander told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “We have been clear that there are elements of the peace plan that he has proposed that are essential for a just and lasting peace.
“It does require some additional work.”
With national security adviser Jonathan Powell set to join counterparts from the US, Ukraine, and European countries for the talks in Geneva on Sunday, Ms Alexander said allies of Ukraine need to “find a way to secure that ceasefire and open up space for meaningful negotiations”.
She said: “Our fundamental view on this is the future of Ukraine has to be determined by Ukrainians themselves.
“But we do need to find a way to bring this conflict to an end and to secure that just and lasting peace that everyone wants.”
Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 09:20Ukraine strikes Russian power and heat station in Moscow region, Russian official says
Ukraine struck a major heat and power station in the Moscow region on Sunday with drones, triggering a fire and forcing backup power to be switched on and mobile heating units to be deployed, the governor of the Moscow region said.
Ukrainian drones struck the Shatura Power Station, about 120 km (75 miles) east of the Kremlin, on Sunday, Moscow region governor, Andrei Vorobyov, said.
Unverified video footage on Telegram showed several bangs and then several balls of flames rising into the night sky.
"Some of the drones were destroyed by air defense forces. Several fell on the territory of the station. A fire broke out at the facility. Now it is localised," Vorobyov said.
Three transformers at the power station, each about 65 square metres (670 square feet) in size, caught fire, the Kommersant newspaper cited the emergencies ministry as saying.
Vorobyov said that backup power had been switched on and that mobile heating systems were being deployed to the area where the temperature was around freezing point.
Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 09:00US, Ukraine and UK will meet in Geneva to discuss Trump's 28 point plan
Top officials from the United States, Ukraine, and national security advisers from France, Britain and Germany will hold talks in Geneva on today to discuss Washington's draft plan to end the war in Ukraine.
It follows criticism of Trump’s 28-point peace plan for skewing to benefit Russia, forcing Ukraine to concede Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk, as well as Nato membership.
Bryony Gooch23 November 2025 08:45Newer1 / 5OlderMore about
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