European, Ukrainian and US envoys, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, are meeting in Geneva to discuss US President Donald Trump's proposal to end the war in Ukraine.
"The current version of the document, although still in the final stages of approval, already reflects most of Ukraine's key priorities," negotiator Rustem Umerov said, adding:"We look forward to further progress throughout the day."
The new document proposes that Ukraine's military be capped at 800,000"in peacetime" rather than a blanket cap of 600,000 proposed by the US plan.
The head of the Ukrainian delegation, presidential chief of staff Andrii Yermak, wrote on social media said that the first meeting was held with national security advisers from the UK, France and Germany.
The allies have rallied around Kyiv in a push to revise the plan, which is seen as favouring Moscow.
“The next meeting is with the US delegation. We are in a very constructive mood,” Yermak said. “We continue working together to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine.”
Rubio was expected to join the talks together with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was waiting for the outcome of the talks. “A positive result is needed for all of us,” he said.
“Ukrainian and American teams, teams of our European partners – are in close contact, and I very much hope there will be a result. Bloodshed must be stopped and it must be guaranteed that the war will not be reignited," he wrote in a post on Telegram on Sunday.
In a later post, Zelensky said that there was an understanding the US would take into account “a number of elements” in a peace deal that are important for Ukraine, but did not elaborate further.
“There have already been brief reports from the team about the results of the first meetings and conversations," he said."There is now an understanding that the American proposals may take into account a number of elements based on the Ukrainian vision and are critically important for Ukraine’s national interests.”
“Further work is ongoing to ensure that all elements are truly effective in achieving the main goal our people hope for – ultimately putting an end to the bloodshed and the war.”
The 28-point blueprint drawn up by the US to end the nearly four-year war has sparked alarm in Kyiv and European capitals. Zelensky has said his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the US support it needs.
The plan acquiesces to many Russian demands that Zelensky has categorically rejected on dozens of occasions, including giving up large pieces of territory in the east as well as Crimea.
The Ukrainian leader has vowed that his people “will always defend” their home.
Speaking before Sunday’s talks, Alice Rufo, France’s minister delegate at the Defense Ministry, told broadcaster France Info that key points of discussion would include the plan’s restrictions on the Ukrainian army, which she described as “a limitation on its sovereignty”.
“Ukraine must be able to defend itself,” she said. “Russia wants war and waged war many times in fact over the past years.”
Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Saturday, Trump said the US proposal was not his “final offer”.
“I would like to get to peace. It should have happened a long time ago. The Ukraine war with Russia should have never happened,” Trump said. “One way or the other, we have to get it ended.”
