The 28-Point Plan: What Trump and Putin Are Offering Ukraine

An exclusive look at the leaked peace proposal that European leaders were never meant to see

The document arrived in Kyiv this week like a ransom note. Twenty-eight points, drafted in secret consultations between Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian presidential adviser Kirill Dmitriev, outlining the terms under which the killing might stop. Ukraine was not consulted in its creation. Europe was excluded from the negotiations. The plan was presented as a fait accompli: accept these terms, or continue dying.

President Trump approved the 28-point plan this week, with involvement from Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Dmitriev expressed optimism because, unlike past efforts, “we feel the Russian position is really being heard”. Of course it is. Russia has been drafting it.

What follows is the full text of the leaked proposal, obtained by Ukrainian opposition MP Aleksey Goncharenko and subsequently reported across international media. Read it carefully. This is what the world’s most powerful nation believes constitutes peace. These are the terms being offered to a country that has lost over 14,000 civilians since 2022. These are the conditions under which Ukrainian parents might stop burying their children.

The question is not whether these terms are perfect. They manifestly are not. The question is whether they are better than the alternative: years more slaughter while defence contractors count their profits and mothers tend graves.

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THE 28-POINT PEACE PROPOSAL

1. Sovereignty Recognition Ukraine’s sovereignty will be confirmed.

2. Non-Aggression Agreement A full and comprehensive non-aggression agreement will be concluded between Russia, Ukraine, and Europe. All ambiguities of the past 30 years will be considered resolved.

3. Mutual Restraint It is expected that Russia will not invade neighbouring countries and that NATO will not expand further.

4. Russia-NATO Dialogue A dialogue will be conducted between Russia and NATO, mediated by the United States, to resolve all security issues and create conditions for de-escalation, thereby ensuring global security and increasing opportunities for cooperation and future economic development.

5. Security Guarantees Ukraine will receive reliable security guarantees.

6. Military Size Limitation The size of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be limited to 600,000 personnel.

Note: This represents a significant reduction from Ukraine’s current mobilized force levels.

7. Constitutional NATO Ban Ukraine agrees to enshrine in its constitution that it will not join NATO, and NATO agrees to include in its statutes a provision that it will not accept Ukraine in the future.

8. No NATO Troops NATO agrees not to deploy troops in Ukraine.

9. European Fighter Deployment European fighter aircraft will be stationed in Poland.

Note: Not in Ukraine, but Poland, suggesting a buffer arrangement.

10. US Guarantees and Conditions The United States will receive compensation for the guarantee. If Ukraine invades Russia, it will lose the guarantee. If Russia invades Ukraine, in addition to a decisive coordinated military response, all global sanctions will be reinstated, recognition of new territories and all other benefits of this deal will be revoked. If Ukraine without cause launches a missile at Moscow or Saint Petersburg, the security guarantee will be considered invalid.

Note: Observe the asymmetry. Ukraine loses guarantees for “launching a missile,” while Russia faces consequences only for full invasion.

11. EU Membership Path Ukraine retains the right to EU membership and will receive short-term preferential access to the European market while the issue is under consideration.

12. Ukraine Reconstruction Package A powerful global package of measures for the reconstruction of Ukraine, including but not limited to: a. Creation of a Ukraine Development Fund to invest in high-growth sectors, including technology, data-processing centres, and artificial intelligence. b. The United States will cooperate with Ukraine on the joint reconstruction, development, modernization, and operation of Ukraine’s gas infrastructure, including pipelines and storage facilities. c. Joint efforts to restore war-affected territories, including the reconstruction and modernization of cities and residential areas. d. Infrastructure development. e. Extraction of minerals and natural resources. f. The World Bank will develop a special financing package to accelerate these efforts.

Note: American corporations gain access to Ukrainian mineral wealth and infrastructure. This is not charity; it is investment opportunity.

13. Russia’s Economic Reintegration Russia will be reintegrated into the global economy: a. The lifting of sanctions will be discussed and agreed upon gradually and on an individual basis. b. The United States will conclude a long-term economic cooperation agreement aimed at mutual development in the fields of energy, natural resources, infrastructure, artificial intelligence, data-processing centres, rare-earth mining projects in the Arctic, and other mutually beneficial corporate opportunities. c. Russia will be invited to return to the G8.

Note: Russia receives extensive economic benefits and restored international status. Question: what does Ukraine receive beyond the right to remain sovereign on reduced territory?

14. Frozen Assets $100 billion of frozen Russian assets will be invested in US-led reconstruction and investment efforts in Ukraine. The United States will receive 50% of the profits from this undertaking. Europe will add another $100 billion to increase the total investment available for Ukraine’s reconstruction. Frozen European assets will be unfrozen. The remaining frozen Russian assets will be invested in a separate American-Russian investment vehicle that will implement joint American-Russian projects in areas to be determined. This fund will be aimed at strengthening bilateral relations and increasing shared interests in order to create strong motivation not to return to conflict.

Note: America takes half the profits from reconstructing Ukraine using Russian frozen assets. Russia gets its European assets back entirely and creates a joint investment fund with America. Who profits here?

15. US-Russia Security Working Group A joint American-Russian working group on security issues will be established to facilitate and ensure the fulfilment of all provisions of this agreement.

Note: Ukraine and Europe are notably absent from this arrangement.

16. Russian Non-Aggression Pledge Russia will legislatively enshrine a policy of non-aggression toward Europe and Ukraine.

17. Nuclear Treaties The United States and Russia will agree to extend the validity of treaties on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and arms control, including START-1.

18. Ukraine Remains Non-Nuclear Ukraine agrees to remain a non-nuclear state in accordance with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Note: Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons in 1994 under the Budapest Memorandum in exchange for security guarantees. Those guarantees failed. Now it promises again.

19. Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant will be restarted under IAEA supervision, and the generated electricity will be split equally between Russia and Ukraine (50:50).

Note: Europe’s largest nuclear plant, on Ukrainian territory, splits its power with the occupying force.

20. Cultural and Educational Reforms Both countries undertake to introduce educational programmes in schools and society that promote understanding and tolerance of different cultures and the elimination of racism and prejudice: a. Ukraine will adopt EU rules on religious tolerance and protection of linguistic minorities. b. Both countries agree to lift all discriminatory measures and to guarantee the rights of Ukrainian and Russian media and education. c. All Nazi ideology and activity must be rejected and prohibited.

Note: Point C echoes Russian propaganda about “denazification” of Ukraine.

21. Territories a. Crimea, Lugansk, and Donetsk will be recognized de facto as Russian, including by the United States. b. Kherson and Zaporizhzhia will be frozen along the line of contact, which will mean de facto recognition along the line of contact. c. Russia renounces other territories (probably referring to parts of Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts) that it controls outside the five regions. d. Ukrainian forces will withdraw from the part of Donetsk oblast they currently control; this withdrawal zone will be regarded as a neutral demilitarized buffer zone, internationally recognized as territory belonging to the Russian Federation. Russian forces will not enter this demilitarized zone.

Note: Ukraine must surrender territory it currently controls to create a “buffer zone” that will be recognized as Russian territory. Russia gains land it does not occupy.

22. Territorial Permanence After future territorial arrangements are agreed, both the Russian Federation and Ukraine undertake not to change these arrangements by force. Any security guarantees will not apply in the event of violation of this commitment.

23. River and Sea Access Russia will not obstruct Ukraine’s commercial use of the Dnieper River, and agreements will be reached on the free transportation of grain across the Black Sea.

24. Humanitarian Provisions A humanitarian committee will be created to resolve outstanding issues: a. All remaining prisoners and bodies will be exchanged on the “all-for-all” principle. b. All civilian detainees and hostages will be returned, including children. c. A family reunification programme will be implemented. d. Measures will be taken to alleviate the suffering of conflict victims.

25. Ukrainian Elections Ukraine will hold elections 100 days after the agreement is signed.

26. Blanket Amnesty All parties involved in the conflict will receive full amnesty for actions committed during the war and will undertake not to file claims or pursue complaints in the future.

Note: War crimes, torture, civilian executions – all forgiven. No accountability, no justice.

27. Legal Enforcement This agreement will be legally binding. Its implementation will be monitored and guaranteed by a Peace Council headed by President Trump. Predetermined sanctions will apply in the event of violations.

Note: Trump, who has openly admired Putin, will personally guarantee this agreement.

28. Immediate Ceasefire Once all parties have agreed to and signed this memorandum, the ceasefire will enter into force immediately after both sides withdraw to the agreed positions so that implementation of the agreement can begin.

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This is the Result of an American Proxy War…

Analysis: Sovereignty in Name Only

This is the deal. Ukraine keeps nominal sovereignty while surrendering territory, limiting its military, constitutionally banning NATO membership, and opening its natural resources to American corporate exploitation. Russia regains international legitimacy, access to frozen assets, economic partnerships with America, and formal recognition of its conquered territories.

And America? America gets 50 per cent of reconstruction profits, access to Ukrainian minerals and infrastructure, new economic ties with Russia including Arctic rare-earth mining, and a grateful client state in Kyiv dependent on Washington’s security umbrella.

The Ukrainian people get to stop dying. That is not nothing. But nor is it the “reliable security guarantees” promised in Point 5. History suggests that guarantees from great powers are worth precisely what Ukrainian sovereignty has proven to be worth: nothing when inconvenient.

European Union foreign ministers have made clear they would oppose demands for “punitive concessions” from Kyiv Pravda France. European and Ukrainian officials warned that any deal should not involve the country’s “capitulation” The Washington Post. French Foreign Minister Barrot insists “peace cannot be capitulation.” But Europe has no alternative plan that does not require American military support it cannot guarantee.

The question facing Ukraine is not whether these terms are just. They plainly are not. The question is whether rejecting them means more years of slaughter for the principle of territorial integrity, while the same Western powers who encouraged Ukrainian resistance count their defense contractor dividends.

Read these 28 points carefully. This is what peace looks like when drafted by empires and ratified by arms dealers. The dead do not get a vote.