Ukraine: U.S. Peace Plan Cedes Donetsk and Luhansk to Moscow

A Peace Plan or a Dressed-Up Surrender?

According to a 28-point draft seen by AFP, the so-called U.S. peace plan would have Ukraine officially cede the contested regions of Donetsk and Luhansk to Russia. These territories, long claimed by Moscow, along with Crimea (already annexed in 2014), would be recognized de facto as Russian, even by Washington. What is presented as a step toward ending the war bears all the hallmarks of a diplomatic capitulation, marking the West’s shift from strategic support to political fatigue.

Crimea, Donbass… and What’s Next?

Beyond Donetsk and Luhansk, the plan would divide Kherson and Zaporizhzhia along the current front line, essentially freezing in place Russian territorial gains. Ukrainian forces would withdraw from the remaining areas of Donetsk, which would then be demilitarized and labeled a Russian “buffer zone.”

These are not terms of peace. They are terms of settlement, dictated by the stronger party and rubber-stamped by a weary West.

NATO Locked Out, Ukraine Defanged

Perhaps most shockingly, Ukraine would be forced to renounce NATO membership permanently via constitutional amendment. NATO, in turn, would explicitly exclude Ukraine from future accession in its own statutes, a blatant concession to Russia’s core demands.

The Ukrainian military would be capped at 600,000 personnel, NATO troops would be banned from operating in Ukraine, and while European fighter jets might be stationed in Poland, Ukraine itself would become a security vacuum, reliant on vague Western “guarantees.”

Zelensky’s “Dignified Peace” or Orchestrated Humiliation?

President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a video address, continued to invoke the need for a “dignified peace”, one that respects Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence. But dignity is increasingly difficult to maintain when strategic allies begin negotiating on your behalf.

Zelensky is expected to speak with former President Donald Trump in the coming days. The White House spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, claimed the plan is “acceptable to both Russia and Ukraine.” A peculiar statement, given how visibly aligned the draft is with Kremlin positions.

Corruption Forgotten, Amnesties for All

Initially, the plan included a clause for auditing Western aid to Ukraine, a not-so-subtle nod to the growing corruption scandals in Kyiv. That has since been removed. In its place? A blanket amnesty for all parties involved in the war. No accountability, no trials, no consequences.

Even the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe’s largest, would be rebooted, its output split 50/50 between Ukraine and Russia, under IAEA supervision. A technocratic solution to a geopolitical robbery.

Putin on the Move, Fog of War over Kupiansk

On the same day the plan was leaked, Kremlin media released images of Vladimir Putin at a Western command post — though it was unclear if he was inside Russia or Ukraine. Russian General Sergei Kuzovlev claimed Kupiansk had fallen to Moscow. Kyiv swiftly denied it.

The ambiguity is not accidental. It’s weaponized. Psychological warfare wrapped in military press releases, all while diplomats push ink on a “peace” plan that reads like Moscow’s terms of victory.

Non-Aggression Pact or Strategic Disarmament?

The American plan includes a “non-aggression pact” between Russia, Ukraine, and Europe. In the event of another Russian invasion, a “coordinated military response” would supposedly follow, though what that means is left purposely vague.

The reconstruction costs, meanwhile, would be covered using $100 billion in frozen Russian assets. But no sanctions enforcement is mentioned. No postwar tribunal. Just infrastructure aid and a pat on the back.

Europe: A Voice, But No Leverage

The European Union was, once again, informed after the fact. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas insisted that “Europe and Ukraine must be involved” in any deal. But the reality is stark: Washington and Moscow are writing the new map of Eastern Europe — while Brussels watches from the lobby.

Peace, or Precedent for Capitulation?

This U.S. peace plan, wrapped in diplomacy, legitimizes territorial conquest, undermines Western credibility, and leaves Ukraine stripped of its strategic agency. The West is not ending a war; it is codifying its failure to win it.

Behind the façade of stability lies a darker reality: the silent endorsement of Russian gains, and the beginning of a new balance of power, not through deterrence, but exhaustion.