Trump Administration Quietly Advances Russia-Ukraine Peace Plan Modeled After Gaza Framework
The Trump administration is quietly advancing a comprehensive peace plan aimed at ending the nearly four-year war between Russia and Ukraine, according to a senior U.S. official. The initiative, which has been in development for over a month, is being led by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff with direct involvement from President Donald Trump.
Witkoff has been in communication with both Ukrainian and Russian officials, seeking input on what each side would be willing to accept in a final settlement. The framework is reportedly inspired by the administration’s recent success in brokering parts of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas—Trump’s 20-point Gaza plan, which led to a tentative truce last month.
According to sources familiar with the discussions, the Russia-Ukraine deal currently consists of 28 points and emphasizes mutual concessions. “Special Envoy Witkoff has been quietly working on this plan for a month, receiving input from both the Ukrainians and the Russians on what terms are acceptable to them to end the war,” a U.S. official confirmed.
One of Witkoff’s key interlocutors has been Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who met with Trump officials in Miami for three days in late October. Dmitriev expressed optimism, saying the Russian position was finally “being heard” by the U.S. side.
Axios reported that the plan could require Ukraine to cede additional territory in exchange for robust U.S. security guarantees—effectively a trade-off that would freeze the battlefield lines while giving Ukraine long-term protection from future Russian aggression. The Trump administration, however, pushed back on the notion that Ukraine would be disproportionately burdened by the deal.
“Durable peace will require both sides to agree to difficult but necessary concessions,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He added that the administration is still refining specific terms, with input from both Kyiv and Moscow.
The Trump White House appears to be taking a more assertive stance toward the Kremlin in recent months. After a summer summit with Putin failed to yield progress, President Trump imposed new sanctions on Russian oil companies. The Treasury Department confirmed that Russian oil is now selling at multi-year lows, a development the administration believes is squeezing the Kremlin’s war financing.
Trump has reportedly grown frustrated with Vladimir Putin’s unwillingness to fully engage in peace talks since the U.S. election. Still, officials say the president remains committed to ending the war, which began during the Biden administration and has since resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. Russia has escalated its military campaign in recent weeks, launching renewed drone and missile strikes across Ukrainian cities.
“President Trump has been clear since day one that he wants the war between Russia and Ukraine to end, and he has grown frustrated with both sides for their refusal to commit to a peace agreement,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. “Nevertheless, the President and his team never gives up, and the United States has been working on a detailed and acceptable plan for both sides to stop the killing and create a durable, lasting peace.”
With negotiations still in progress, administration officials remain tight-lipped on the full contents of the plan. However, the parallels with Trump’s Middle East strategy signal a broader shift toward conflict resolution through transactional diplomacy and strategic incentives.