A 28-point US peace plan, hatched during “secret” talks, has been revealed and presented to Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to Reuters, he’s under pressure to agree to a framework, or face consequences. Follow the latest below.
Friday 21 November 2025 14:17, UK
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
The latest American diplomacy push comes just as Ukraine marks the so-called ‘Day of Dignity and Freedom’.
The national holiday, which is observed on 21 November, commemorates the two major waves of pro-democracy protests: the Orange Revolution in 2004 and the Euromaidan in 2013/14.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared images of himself lighting candles in Kyiv for the protesters killed during the pro-European protests 12 years ago.
He wrote in a post on social media:
“It is a commemoration of the price of Ukraine’s independence and of the effort that underpins our real sovereignty… With a neighbor like Russia, defending one’s own dignity, freedom, and independence is an extremely difficult task – but without it, the Ukrainian people cannot be preserved.”
Sir Keir Starmer has just been speaking to broadcasters about the US peace plan.
Asked for his reaction, the British prime minister said: “I’ve just had a call with President Zelenskyy alongside President Macron and Chancellor Merz, and that was an opportunity for us to express again our support for Ukraine, and the principle that’s very important, that all matters to do with Ukraine must be determined ultimately by Ukraine.
“Now, we all just want a just and lasting peace. That’s what the president of America wants. That’s what we all want.
“And so we need to work from where we are to that end. But the principle that Ukraine must determine its future under its sovereignty is a fundamental principle.”
Asked how he felt when he read Trump’s proposals, the PM said: “It reinforced in me that basic principle.
“But we have to work from where we are to the just and lasting peace.
“I know that’s what President Trump wants, and he has been working to that end, but we must reiterate the principle that matters about Ukraine must be determined by Ukraine.”
Starmer is currently in South Africa ahead of the G20 summit, which gets under way tomorrow.
For the latest developments at the summit, you can follow our Politics Hub here…
The EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has been speaking further to reporters about the US peace deal for Ukraine.
She said that Russia has no right to receive any concessions from Ukraine, and that the terms of any peace agreement are for Ukraine to decide.
Both Europe and Ukraine want peace but can’t simply give in to aggression, Kallas said.
As a reminder, one part of the 28-point peace plan says the entirety of Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk would be recognised as “de-facto Russian”, while current frontlines in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia would be frozen, with recognition of Russian gains.
This morning, Kallas said the EU would support any peace plan for Ukraine as long as it brings a lasting and just peace, and if it involves Ukraine and the EU.
According to Reuters news agency, Ukraine is under more pressure from the US to agree to a peace deal than in previous negotiations.
Citing two sources familiar with the matter, Reuters highlights two factors:
As a reminder, this is what the 28-point plan entails:
The Ukrainian leader has just given his remarks after a joint call with the leaders of Germany, France and UK (see 12:25).
“We discussed the plan for peace for Ukraine and all of Europe,” he says.
“We value the efforts of the United States, President Trump, and his team aimed at ending this war.
“We are working on the document prepared by the American side. This must be a plan that ensures a real and dignified peace.”
He adds they are “coordinating closely” to make sure “the principled stances are taken into account”.
“We coordinated the next steps and agreed that our teams will work together at the corresponding levels,” he says.
We just brought you the views of European leaders after their call earlier today – see the post below this one.
We now have the comments of another prominent figure from the continent.
Donald Tusk – now the Polish prime minister, but formerly the president of the European Council – has just shared a more forthright view on the peace plan.
“All the decisions concerning Poland will be taken by Poles,” he starts off by saying, reminding “nothing about us without us”.
Then he says: “When it comes to peace, all the negotiations should include Ukraine.
“Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine.”
During their call with Volodymyr Zelenskyy just now, European leaders have reaffirmed that they would continue to “safeguard vital European and Ukrainian interests”.
That’s according to a readout from the call, provided by the German government. The call, which included the German chancellor, the French president and Prime Minister Keir Starmer, took place at around 11am.
Among other things, the leaders insisted that the current frontline would be the starting point for any peace talks and that the Ukrainian armed forces would need to “remain capable of effectively defending Ukraine’s sovereignty”.
For context: The leaders were discussing the US-proposed peace plan, which would hand Russia control over eastern Ukrainian regions, that it hasn’t conquered yet. It also requires Ukraine to reduce its army to 600,000 troops.
The readout said that they “welcomed the US efforts to end the war in Ukraine” and in particular “the commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and the willingness to provide Ukraine with solid security guarantees”.
Any agreement affecting Europe, the EU or NATO would need to be approved by European partners or a consensus of the allies, the statement added.
Britons buying cocaine on a Friday night could be inadvertently funding Russia’s war in Ukraine, investigations by the National Crime Agency show.
The NCA has uncovered a billion-pound money laundering network is operating in 28 towns and cities across the UK.
Couriers collect “dirty” cash generated from drugs, firearms and immigration gangs, which is then converted into cryptocurrency.
Officials say these illicit transactions have a direct link to “geopolitical events causing suffering around the world”.
Watch: Network used British lorries and bank in Kyrgyzstan to fund Russia’s war
According to the NCA, the enterprise even purchased a bank to facilitate payments that supported Russia’s military efforts and helped sidestep sanctions.
Security minister Dan Jarvis said this “has exposed the corrupt tactics Russia used to avoid sanctions and fund its illegal war in Ukraine”.
To date, 128 arrests linked to the network have been made, with more than £25m in cash and digital assets seized.
We can now bring you a condensed overview of all 28 points from the peace plan proposed by the Trump administration.
It covers a range of issues – from territorial concessions to reconstruction programmes, the future Ukrainian relationship with NATO and the EU, and educational reforms in both Ukraine and Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has once more commented on the latest updates on the US-proposed peace plan at his daily media briefing.
He said Zelenskyy’s “freedom to make decisions is shrinking as he loses territory” due to what he called Russian progress on the battlefield.
“Effective work by the Russian Armed Forces should convince Zelenskyy and his regime to negotiate and do so now rather than later,” Peskov added.
However, the Kremlin has not yet officially received the 28-point plan from the US and “nothing substantive is being being discussed” – in line with what we heard from the foreign ministry earlier (see our post at 10.47).
Peskov added that Russia wants peace talks to be successful and will therefore not publicly discuss the points.
Be the first to get Breaking News
Install the Sky News app for free