THE United States is alleged to have threatened to curb intelligence sharing and weapons supplies to Ukraine in a bid to compel Kyiv into accepting the outline of a US-brokered peace plan that concedes key Russian demands, according to two individuals familiar with the talks.
Reuters reported that the sources, speaking anonymously, described the current pressure from Washington as the most intense Ukraine has faced since the start of previous negotiating efforts.
They said Washington wanted Kyiv to sign a framework agreement as early as next Thursday. “They want to stop the war and want Ukraine to pay the price,” one source said.
Washington has presented a 28-point plan that endorses several of Moscow’s principal war aims, including forcing Ukraine to cede further territory, sharply reducing its military capability and permanently barring it from joining NATO.
Senior US military officials met President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Thursday to press what the US ambassador described as an “aggressive timeline” for the deal’s signature.
President Donald Trump confirmed he expects Kyiv to accept the plan within a week, telling Fox News Radio that Thursday was a suitable deadline. He later said time was running short due to winter and that Zelensky would “have to like it”.
“If he doesn't like it, then you know, they should just keep fighting, I guess,” Trump said. “At some point he's going to have to accept something he hasn't accepted.”
Recalling a tense February meeting, he added: “You remember right in the Oval Office, not so long ago, I said, ‘You don't have the cards.’”
Zelensky, in a national address on Friday, warned that Ukraine risked losing its dignity and freedom — or the support of Washington — if pressured into accepting terms he has previously rejected as capitulation.
“Now, Ukraine can face a very difficult choice — either losing dignity or risk losing a major partner,” he said. “I will fight 24/7 to ensure that at least two points in the plan are not overlooked – the dignity and freedom of Ukrainians.”
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, said the US plan could form the basis of a final settlement, despite Moscow refusing to shift on its core territorial and security demands. He said Western allies “do not understand the reality of Russian advances”.
According to a draft seen by Reuters, the plan requires Ukraine to withdraw from areas it still controls in territories Russia claims to have annexed. In return, Russia would relinquish smaller portions of occupied land elsewhere.
Ukraine would be permanently prohibited from joining NATO; its armed forces capped at 600,000 troops; and NATO barred from placing troops in Ukraine.
Sanctions on Russia would be eased; Moscow would be invited back into the G8 and frozen Russian assets pooled into an investment fund from which Washington would receive a share of profits.
Ukraine’s long-standing demand for enforceable defence guarantees equivalent to NATO’s Article 5 is addressed only briefly, with a single line promising “robust security guarantees” without details.
European leaders, who were not consulted by Washington, are preparing counter-proposals with Kyiv. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned: “We all want this war to end, but how it ends matters. Russia has no legal right whatsoever to any concessions from the country it invaded. This is a very dangerous moment for all.”
Putin’s investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, said the plan aimed to prevent further Ukrainian losses, while suggesting it emerged from back-channel conversations with Trump envoy Steve Witkoff.
“Because of warmongers’ propaganda, many people miss that Trump’s Peace Plan is designed to save Ukraine from losing even more land and lives,” Dmitriev wrote on X.
While two sources told Reuters Washington had explicitly threatened to withhold intelligence and weapons, a senior US official later denied this, saying it was “not accurate” to characterise the discussions that way.
Publicly, Zelensky has avoided rejecting the US plan outright. After speaking with the leaders of Britain, Germany and France, and with US Vice President JD Vance, he said: “We value the efforts of the United States, President Trump, and his team aimed at ending this war. This must be a plan that ensures a real and dignified peace.”
Analysts warn that an agreement perceived domestically as unfavourable could destabilise Ukraine. “Russia gets everything it wants and Ukraine gets not very much,” said Tim Ash of Chatham House. “If Zelensky accepts this, I anticipate huge political, social and economic instability in Ukraine.”
The plan is expected to dominate discussions on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Johannesburg, which European leaders will attend despite Trump’s boycott, as the conflict approaches its fourth year. - November 22, 2025
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