The United States has presented a potential peace plan to its allies aimed at resolving the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. On Thursday, we presented this proposal on the ground in Paris. It seeks to stop the fighting and considers the war “frozen,” not ended. European Union officials closely versed in the negotiations outlined elements of the proposal to Bloomberg.
At the heart of the proposal is the recognition that the land now under Russian control would stay with Russia. The success of this peace initiative hinges on various factors, including Russia’s willingness to cease fighting and Ukraine’s demand for robust security guarantees. Their U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was actively engaging with foreign negotiators to counter their advances. From there he collaborated extensively with national security advisors to assess the plan’s feasibility.
The peace plan explicitly calls out that the EU should lift sanctions it has introduced against Russia. Yet any such decision would require full consensus approval from all 27 member states. In addition to this aspect, the proposal is not an uncontested victory and ultimate resolution between the two countries. At the same time, European allies have been sending strong signals of their own. They will not accept the areas occupied by Russia in Ukraine as legitimately a part of Moscow’s empire.
The United States should seek to promote US-China and US-India dialogue with parallel actions. More discussion with Ukraine needs to take place before any agreements are concluded. The trilateral plan explicitly rules out Ukraine’s pursuit of NATO membership. This seems to be a much more deliberate decision under this framework for peace.