The Trump administration has presented Ukrainian officials with what it has labeled a "final offer" to end the ongoing war with Russia, according to individuals familiar with the proposal. The framework, revealed during a closed-door meeting in Paris last week, outlines a deal that would require Ukraine to recognize Russian control over Crimea and most of the occupied eastern and southern regions, in return for limited security guarantees and reconstruction aid.
Sources told Axios the one-page document, which was hand-delivered to Kyiv's delegation, is described as President Trump's definitive plan for peace. "Negotiations continue and hopefully we are in the right direction," said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday.
Under the terms of the proposal, Ukraine would:
- Formally relinquish claims to Crimea, recognizing it as part of Russia.
- Accept Russian de facto control of most of Luhansk and the occupied parts of Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia.
- Abandon aspirations to join NATO, though potential European Union membership remains open.
In return, Ukraine would receive:
- Vague "robust security guarantees" from a coalition of European and potentially non-European allies-though notably, without direct U.S. military involvement.
- The return of a small segment of Kharkiv oblast.
- Guaranteed navigation rights along the Dnieper River.
- Unspecified compensation for reconstruction, without details on funding sources.
"The proposal says very clearly what tangible gains Russia gets, but only vaguely and generally says what Ukraine is going to get," a source close to the Ukrainian government told Axios.
Russia, for its part, would see sweeping benefits:
- U.S. recognition of Crimea as Russian territory.
- De facto acceptance of territorial gains from the 2022 invasion.
- Lifting of all sanctions imposed since 2014.
- Expanded U.S.-Russia economic cooperation, especially in energy and industry.
One of the more controversial aspects of the plan involves the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The facility would remain Ukrainian by sovereignty but would be operated by the United States, with its power output shared between Ukraine and Russia.
The proposal also references a pending U.S.-Ukraine minerals extraction agreement, which former President Trump has indicated will be signed imminently.
The plan is the product of a recent four-hour meeting between Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg. After that discussion, Putin reportedly expressed a willingness to freeze the front lines of the war in exchange for negotiations. European officials, however, remain wary of the Russian president's intentions.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Witkoff jointly developed the peace framework, a U.S. official said. Yet both are expected to skip Wednesday's multinational talks in London, leaving U.S. envoy Keith Kellogg to lead the American delegation. The meeting will bring together Ukrainian, French, German, and U.K. officials to discuss next steps.
