Washington, Kyiv say a peace deal must ‘fully uphold’ Ukraine sovereignty

GENEVA: Washington and Kyiv said Sunday that any eventual deal to halt the war with Russia must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty, after “constructive” talks between US, Ukrainian and European officials in Geneva.

After a day of meetings that kicked off based on a US proposal that was criticized as being in Russia’s favor, negotiators have drafted “an updated and refined peace framework,” a US-Ukraine joint statement said.

US President Donald Trump had given Ukraine until November 27 to approve his plan to end the nearly four-year conflict, which began after Russia launched a full-scale invasion.

But Kyiv was seeking changes to the draft that accepted a range of Russia’s hard-line demands, with the 28-point plan requiring the invaded country to cede territory, cut 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.

“They reaffirmed that any future agreement must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty and deliver a sustainable and just peace,” it said, noting “meaningful progress.”

Both sides pledged to keep working on joint proposals “in the coming days.”

But even as the White House said in a separate statement that the talks marked “a “significant step forward,” a Russian drone strike on the major Ukrainian city of Kharkiv killed four people, its mayor said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio boasted “tremendous” progress after a day of meetings, while the head of Ukraine’s delegation Andriy Yermak also told reporters the sides had made “very good progress.”

Rubio, whose delegation included Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff, told reporters that the work to narrow the areas of disagreement had advanced “in a very substantial way.”

“I can tell you that the items that remain open are not insurmountable,” he said, adding “I honestly believe we’ll get there.”

Rubio stressed that any final agreement would “have to be agreed upon by the presidents, and there are a couple issues that we need to continue to work on” before trying to bring onboard the Kremlin, which welcomed the original proposal.

“Obviously, the Russians get a vote.”