A freshly revised peace framework unveiled after intense talks in Geneva may be acceptable to Kyiv — but key issues still stand in the way of a deal.
Washington had pushed for a rapid agreement ahead of Thanksgiving, but Kyiv balked when the initial proposal appeared heavily tilted toward Moscow’s demands.
That prompted high-level delegations from Ukraine, the US, Germany, France and the UK to convene emergency negotiations.
Officials from Kyiv said the parties emerged with an "updated and revised" draft, reportedly pared down to roughly 19 points and substantially different from the first version.
Details of the new text have not been released publicly.
European amendments that insiders say have found their way into the latest draft would remove an automatic ban on Ukraine joining NATO and scrap limits on the size of its armed forces.
The revised language also stops short of allowing Western troops to be permanently based in Ukraine, while not imposing an absolute prohibition on their presence.
On the most sensitive matter of territory, the new approach appears to rule out handing over the rest of the Donbas to Russia without conditions.
The draft reportedly frames recovery of occupied areas as a diplomatic objective rather than an immediate territorial concession.
Provisions that would have granted blanket amnesty for wartime crimes have been dropped.
Central to Kyiv’s negotiating stance are security guarantees.
Several Western leaders have discussed protections resembling NATO’s collective-defence commitments, and Ukraine has made clear it sees such guarantees as non-negotiable.
Germany’s chancellor described the package as notably altered in a positive direction, but it remains unclear how many of the European changes have been fully incorporated.
US and Ukrainian officials say progress was made, but they declined to publish the full text.
The first draft’s provenance raised eyebrows: it echoed narratives promoted by Moscow and was linked to President Trump’s special envoy, who met Vladimir Putin earlier this year.
That initial tilt prompted sharp pushback from Kyiv and some European capitals.
Even with a more balanced draft on the table, Moscow’s position is a wildcard.
Analysts note that Russia feels tactically confident given recent battlefield gains and internal challenges in Kyiv, and may prefer to wait rather than accept a compromise that does not meet its demands.
For now, renewed diplomacy has injected momentum and a potential pathway for Ukraine to consider.
But without ironclad security guarantees and clear willingness from Russia to halt fighting, the revised framework may struggle to turn into a lasting peace.
