US-Ukrainian Agreement on a 'New Draft' to End the War

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the proposed peace plan, currently under discussion with the United States and Europe, included some good amendments, adding that some sensitive issues would be discussed later with his American counterpart Donald Trump.

Reduction in the Number of Items

The amendments included reducing the number of points in the previous proposal from 28 to 19, according to what the Financial Times reported from a Ukrainian official.

The official informed ABC News that the American peace plan has now become less comprehensive, with its items reduced from 28 to 19.

An informed source revealed that the updated agreement does not include a cap on the Ukrainian army, whereas the first version stipulated reducing the Ukrainian army to 600,000.

The source pointed out that the clause on "amnesty for crimes committed during the Russian-Ukrainian war will not be included in the new version of the updated peace proposal."

A Tense Start to the Session

Ukrainian First Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsya disclosed that the talks in Geneva began last Sunday in a tense atmosphere but ended on a positive note. The Americans arrived feeling frustrated due to leaks that preceded the meeting about the items in the first draft proposal.

He added: It took about two hours of discussions between the head of the Ukrainian president's office, Andriy Yermak, and the American delegation to calm the atmosphere and get things back on track.

Kyslytsya noted that the lengthy morning session with the Americans allowed the Ukrainians to express their concerns and requests, followed by a short break and a detailed review point by point of the proposed peace plan.

He added: The meeting was intensive but fruitful, resulting in a fully revised draft that made both sides feel "positive." He stated that the new draft does not resemble much the previously leaked version of the peace proposal, which had caused outrage in Kyiv. He clarified that very few points remained from the original version.

Agreement on Several Issues

According to sources who participated in the meeting, after hours of meticulous discussions, the American and Ukrainian teams reached an agreement on several issues, but they "put in brackets the most contentious points - including regional issues and relations between NATO, Russia, and the United States for Presidents Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky to decide."

Ukrainians confirmed that they were not given a mandate to make decisions regarding territorial concessions, as proposed in the original draft, which requires a national referendum according to their country's constitution.

It is noteworthy that the discussions held at the American mission in Geneva were managed by the Ukrainian side through the head of the Ukrainian president's office, Andriy Yermak, and the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, Rustem Umerov, with support from Kyslytsya and several military officers and intelligence officials.

The American delegation included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.