US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has insisted that a proposed 28-point plan to end the Ukraine war, which has been widely viewed as favourable to Russia, was “authored by the US”.
It comes after a group of senators said they had been told by Rubio that the draft – which one said he described as a Russian “wish list” – did not reflect Washington’s position.
Rubio later distanced himself from those claims and said the plan came from the US, and was “based on input” from both Russia and Ukraine.
His intervention came as he flew to Geneva in Switzerland for talks with Ukrainian and European security officials on the plan, which US President Donald Trump has called for Kyiv to agree to swiftly.
Ukraine’s allies in Europe have pushed back on major provisions in the draft, which has not been made public but details of which have been widely leaked.
It includes Ukraine agreeing to withdraw troops from eastern areas which Russia has been unable to take by force, and to limit the size of its armed forces.
On Saturday, Republican Senator Mike Rounds said Rubio had told a group of lawmakers that the draft plan was not US policy.
He told the Halifax Security Forum: “What [Rubio] told us was that this was not the American proposal.”
Rounds said he had been assured that the plan was presented to Steve Witkoff, who acts as Trump’s overseas diplomatic envoy, by “someone… representing Russia”. The senator continued: “It is not our recommendation. It is not our peace plan.”
Shortly after, State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said Rounds’s account of his conversation with Rubio was “blatantly false”.
He wrote on X: “As Secretary Rubio and the entire administration has consistently maintained, this plan was authored by the United States, with input from both the Russians and Ukrainians.”
Rubio then posted on social media himself, saying: “The peace proposal was authored by the US. It is based on input from the Russian side. But it is also based on previous and ongoing input from Ukraine.”
On Saturday, Trump – who has made securing a deal to end the conflict a central foreign policy goal during his second term – said the plan did not represent a “final offer” for Ukraine, having previously said President Volodymyr Zelensky “will have to” approve it.
In a post on X on Saturday, Vice President JD Vance said criticism of the proposed peace plan “either misunderstands the framework or misstates some critical reality on the ground”.
“There is a fantasy that if we just give more money, more weapons, or more sanctions, victory is at hand,” he said, adding that peace will not be made by “politicians living in a fantasy land”.
When details of the 28-point plan first emerged, Zelensky warned that his country faced “one of the most difficult moments in our history” over US pressure to accept it, while Russian President Vladimir Putin said it could form the “basis” of an agreement.
Trump previously gave Ukraine until Thursday to approve the proposal, though said that deadline could be extended if talks progress.
Both Rubio and Witkoff will attend the Geneva meeting on Sunday alongside security officials from the UK, France and Germany, as well as Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies have already publicly pushed back against the plan, saying in a joint statement issued at the G20 summit in South Africa that it “would leave Ukraine vulnerable to attack”.
It said the plan had elements “essential for a just and lasting peace” but would “require additional work”, citing concerns over border changes and caps on Ukraine’s army.
The statement was signed by the leaders of Canada, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, the UK, Germany and Norway. Two senior EU officials were also among the signatories.
Speaking at the gathering in Johannesburg, French President Emmanuel Macron said the plan “cannot simply be an American proposal”, adding that any agreement had to also guarantee security for “all Europeans”.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said “we are still quite a long way from a good outcome for everyone”.
Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spoke to both Zelensky and Trump on Saturday. No 10 said he briefed the US president on European talks about the plan.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, after which Ukraine became heavily dependent on US-manufactured weapons.
In its current form, the plan would see Ukrainian troops withdraw from the part of the eastern Donetsk region that they currently control, and de facto Russian control of Donetsk, as well as the neighbouring Luhansk region and the southern Crimea peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.
The plan also includes freezing the borders of Ukraine’s southern Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions along the current battle lines. Both regions are partially occupied by Russia.
Kyiv would receive “reliable security guarantees”, the plan says, although no details have been given. The document says “it is expected” that Russia will not invade its neighbours and Nato will not expand further.
On Saturday, Zelensky announced that his head of office Andriy Yermak would lead Ukraine’s negotiating team for future talks on a peace deal, including any that may involve Russia.
“Our representatives know how to defend Ukraine’s national interests and exactly what must be done to prevent Russia from launching a third invasion, another strike against Ukraine,” the president said in a video statement posted on social media.
