Ukrainian official denies role in reported US peace plan to end war

MOSCOW

Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov denied on Friday that he negotiated or modified the draft of a US peace plan during his visit to Washington, DC.

In a statement on Telegram, Umerov described his role during the trip as "purely logistical."

"While on assignment in the US, my responsibilities were technical -- arranging meetings and preparing dialogues. I did not provide any assessments or, especially, approve any clauses. That falls outside my purview and violates procedures," he said.

He denied media reports that he had "approved" or "deleted points" from the plan, saying, "These are examples of unchecked information arising outside the context of consultations."

Umerov's statement came after Ukrainian lawmaker Oleksiy Honcharenko published a list of 28 points on Nov. 20, which he claimed constituted a new peace plan from US President Donald Trump.

According to Umerov, technical teams continue their work, reviewing proposals within the constant principles of Ukraine -- sovereignty, people's security, and fair peace.

Contrary to Umerov's account, the US outlet Axios reported that President Zelenskyy had authorized him to negotiate the document with US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff, whom the publication identifies as one of the plan's architects. Axios also reported that many of Umerov's comments were incorporated into the text.

However, a Ukrainian official told Axios that Umerov did not accept the plan's provisions, clarifying that Kyiv opposes many of its points.

The reported plan includes provisions for Ukraine to forgo NATO membership, recognize Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk as de facto Russian territories, and withdraw troops from Donbas to establish a demilitarized zone, while receiving security guarantees based on NATO's collective defense principle.

Zelenskyy has announced his intention to discuss the proposals with Trump soon. The Kremlin has stated that no new discussions have occurred since the August meeting between the presidents of Russia and the US in Alaska.