Media: Ukraine moves away from Trump's peace framework with Russia

Ukraine has moved beyond the previously discussed 28-point draft plan aimed at ending the war with Russia and is now seeking a more favourable arrangement as battlefield dynamics shift, officials told The New York Post.

Ahead of a key meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO summit on July 8, Kyiv is moving away from a specific US-backed peace proposal and instead seeking to convince Trump that Ukraine retains significant leverage in the conflict.

According to Ukrainian officials, there are currently no plans for a trilateral summit involving the United States, Ukraine and Russia, nor are there formal discussions centred on a specific peace framework — a marked change from last year, when negotiations were actively underway.

The pause in talks coincides with improvements in Ukraine's position on the battlefield, developments that "gives us reason to think more creatively about ending the war," Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States Olha Stefanishyna told The Post.

Ukrainian officials view Trump's increasing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin as an opportunity to intensify pressure on Moscow to end the conflict.

"Ukraine has always been ready for substantial diplomatic engagement and remains committed to achieving a just and lasting peace," Stefanishyna said. "Unfortunately, the Russian leader has shown no genuine interest in ending the war."

Officials in Kyiv believe that bringing the conflict to an end will require altering the balance of pressure on Russia rather than revisiting another version of the same peace proposal.

"A cease-fire doesn't have to come from endlessly debating a single peace plan. There are other paths forward, and I hope Presidents Trump and Zelenskyy will discuss those opportunities at the NATO summit," Stefanishyna added.

In recent weeks, Zelenskyy and Ukraine's NATO partners have sought to demonstrate to Trump that Kyiv's leverage extends beyond military operations, pointing to the country's combat experience, intelligence capabilities and role in European security.

The effort comes as Trump has become increasingly dissatisfied with Moscow following months of diplomacy that failed to produce a breakthrough.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump said an end to the war could be "closer than people realize," adding that both Putin and Zelenskyy had expressed a desire to stop the fighting.

"We're going to be going to NATO, and we're going to be talking about it, and I think we're going to get it," he said. "I think we're going to get it ended. It's been a terrible situation."

The US administration has also shown greater recognition of Ukraine's military position. Vice President JD Vance argued on Monday that Russia's offensive momentum has largely stalled, a development Kyiv hopes will strengthen Trump's hand in dealings with Moscow.

"Frankly, the Russians are in a place right now where the amount that they can get through continued [Russian] offensive operations is vanishingly small — and getting close to zero," Vance told The Times of London. "That very well may create the space that we need to bring this thing to a close."

Stefanishyna noted that Washington's assessment of Russia has evolved after repeated attempts to engage Moscow failed to yield meaningful results.

Russia promoted a US-backed 28-point peace proposal in November, a plan that drew criticism from opponents who argued it conceded too much to Moscow's maximalist objectives. The initiative prompted two months of intensive diplomacy, with American negotiators holding talks with both Russian and Ukrainian officials in an effort to refine the proposal into an acceptable agreement.

Those efforts ultimately stalled as Moscow refused to retreat from its original demands. Negotiations later lost momentum in January, before coming to a halt after the United States and Israel launched military operations against Iran the following month.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov