Washington and Kyiv said on Sunday that any eventual peace deal to halt the war with Russia must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty, following “constructive” talks between US, Ukrainian, and European officials in Geneva.
Negotiations, based on a US-proposed plan criticized for favoring Russia, produced an updated and refined peace framework, according to a joint US-Ukraine statement.
The conflict, which began nearly four years ago following Russia’s full-scale invasion, remains unresolved.
US President Donald Trump had set a deadline of November 27 for Ukraine to approve his plan.
Kyiv, however, sought modifications to a draft that would have required Ukraine to cede territory, reduce its army, and pledge never to join NATO.
“The talks were constructive, focused, and respectful, underscoring the shared commitment to achieving a just and lasting peace,” the joint statement said. It added that any future agreement must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty while delivering a sustainable and just peace. Both sides pledged to continue working on joint proposals in the coming days.
Despite the diplomatic progress, conflict continues on the ground. A Russian drone strike on Kharkiv killed four people, local officials reported.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the discussions as making “tremendous” progress, while Andriy Yermak, head of Ukraine’s delegation, said the sides had achieved “very good progress.”
Rubio noted that remaining points of disagreement were not insurmountable and expressed optimism that a final deal could be reached.
He emphasized that any agreement would require approval by the presidents of the involved nations before involving the Kremlin, which had initially welcomed the US proposal. “Obviously, the Russians get a vote,” Rubio added.
‘Zero gratitude’ claim
His comments came after Trump earlier lashed out at Ukraine.
“UKRAINE ‘LEADERSHIP’ HAS EXPRESSED ZERO GRATITUDE FOR OUR EFFORTS,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, also accusing European countries of not doing enough to stop the war, but offering no direct condemnation of Moscow.
Not long after, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X that his country was “grateful to the United States… and personally to President Trump” for the assistance that has been “saving Ukrainian lives”.
Announcing a deadly Russian drone strike, Kharkiv mayor Igor Terekhov said on Telegram Sunday it was “truly horrible” that despite the negotiations, “Russian troops are attacking civilian objects, civilian infrastructure, residential buildings”.
The Ukrainian delegation had referred to a new version of the US draft plan, which has yet to be published, saying it “already reflects most of Ukraine’s key priorities”.
At the end of the day, Rubio said he thought Trump was “quite pleased at the reports we’ve given him about the amount of progress that’s been made”.
Asked about whether he believed a deal could be reached by Thursday, as demanded by the US president, he said “the deadline is we want to get this done as soon as possible”.
“I think we made a tremendous amount of progress. I feel very optimistic that we’re going to get there in a very reasonable period of time, very soon.”
European ‘centrality’
Rubio said that his delegation had met Sunday with “national security advisors from various European countries”.
Ukraine’s delegation also met high-level officials from Britain, France and Germany.
The US plan was drafted without input from Ukraine’s European allies, who were scrambling Sunday to make their voices heard and boost Kyiv’s position.
“Ukraine must have the freedom and sovereign right to choose its own destiny.
They have chosen a European destiny,” EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement, stressing that the “centrality” of the European Union’s role must be “fully reflected” in any peace plan.
A number of leaders called Trump Sunday, with Downing Street saying UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the US president had agreed “that we all must work together at this critical moment to bring about a just and lasting peace”.
