"Kasparov explained in simple terms what lies behind Putin's words and the reason for the Kremlin leader's insolence
Chess player Garry Kasparov warned Ukrainians that peace will not be achieved anytime soon, citing Putin's words.
The Russian dictator is openly stating that he wants not only Donbas but all of Ukraine, which will become a springboard for attacks on European countries, Garry Kasparov explained.Discussions of a peace plan may yield no results, as nothing has yet been done beyond rhetoric, and Ukraine needs real help to resist Russia.
The Russian opposition leader expressed his vision of the peace plan on the YouTube channel "Free Russia Forum."
The world chess champion commented on Putin's statement made in Bishkek: "I don't know what decision Ukraine will make, because words and good wishes won't hold the line. Putin senses all this, and Putin is becoming brazen, as always. This has always been linked to his sense of impunity. He demands everything and understands that with an ally like Trump, he can get a lot."
"The point is, this isn't the end of the war. He reiterated in Bishkek, for those who continue to live in a world of illusions, that Russia's goal is to continue its confrontation with the free world. What he wants in Ukraine is a foothold. The Russian economy is in a critical situation today, and a respite is needed. A respite. There will be no peace. This is Putin's mockery: I'll give you a piece of paper saying I won't attack Europe. How many of these pieces of paper has he given? That's how Europe interpreted it: everyone understands it's just a piece of paper," Kasparov warned Europe of the danger."
"Portnikov answered the question of what awaits us in the next six months in one sentence: "I don't think..."
Publicist Vitaly Portnikov expressed confidence that Putin intends to fight until he destroys Ukraine
We would like to hope that peace treaty terms will soon be found that will satisfy both sides and the war will end, at least temporarily, but this is unlikely to happen, said Vitaly Portnikov.The point is that Putin has no intention of stopping, as he believes he can destroy Ukraine and has the resources to do so.
The journalist voiced his forecast for the near future in an interview with OBOZ UA on YouTube.
When asked what awaits us in the next six months, the political analyst responded briefly and unequivocally: "We will be searching for ways out of the war, which can only be successful if we manage to break Russia's economic backbone. We need to believe that if the US tightens sanctions and enforces them, or if some countries are afraid to violate sanctions for fear of angering Trump, which is also possible, this will indeed impact Putin's economic opportunities."
"I don't think Putin is ready to end the war in Ukraine. He's not ready because he believes his goal—Ukraine's disappearance from the world's political map—will be achieved; people around him are telling him so. Departments are being prepared in Russia to work on the Russification of Ukrainians. They're preparing books and training people. They're working on what will be here when Ukraine is gone," Portnikov warned his fellow citizens."
"China has committed a new, unprecedented act of villainy against Ukraine – FT
China has acquired direct ownership of a Russian company involved in supplying drones for the war against Ukraine.
The Financial Times has found that a Chinese businessman has become a co-owner of a Russian military equipment supplier for the first time.This unprecedented move demonstrates that Beijing has gone far beyond its previous secret schemes and has effectively joined the Kremlin's military machine.
The Chinese government of Xi Jinping, which controls absolutely all processes in China, did not put up any barriers to the deal, effectively supporting it.
The scandalous deal was uncovered by insiders.Chinese businessman Wang Dinghua, owner of Shenzhen Minghuaxin, a major drone component supplier, acquired a stake in the Russian company Rustakt.Rustakt is the manufacturer of the BT-40 kamikaze drones, the equipment Russia is using against Ukrainian cities and Ukrainian Armed Forces positions.
Corporate filings revealed that Dinghua owns 5% of Rustakt.The very next day after the FT requested comment, Russia hastily suppressed all ownership information.The data disappeared from public records: so toxic was the deal..."
"Plan Without Peace: Putin's Friends Have Begun Secret Business Talks with the US - WSJ
Dictator Vladimir Putin's inner circle, in the midst of war, is conducting secret talks with the United States about joint business projects in Russia.
The Kremlin is conducting highly active, secret talks with US officials.They are focused not on ending the Russian-Ukrainian war, but on joint business projects, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal.
According to sources, the private US-Russian meeting in Miami discussed not only ending the war but also a radically new model of cooperation – joint US-Russian economic projects that could pave the way for Moscow to reenter the global economy.The discussion focused on US access to frozen Russian assets, multibillion-dollar investments, and raw material extraction in the Arctic.
Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian sovereign wealth fund and now the Kremlin's key negotiator, was at the center of the negotiations.According to the newspaper, he presented the Americans with a plan to utilize the Russian Central Bank's frozen state assets in the West.
It was envisaged that American corporations would be able to use these funds for joint projects with Russia and, possibly, participate in Ukraine's post-war reconstruction.
Another point under discussion concerned the development of Arctic resources and even a potential joint mission to Mars through Elon Musk's SpaceX.
The Kremlin's strategy, according to the publication, originated before Trump took office and was aimed at circumventing traditional US security structures.By offering lucrative contracts in energy and rare earth metals mining, Moscow attempted to shift the perception of Russia as a military threat and present it as an economic opportunity.According to sources, the position was that business interests could overshadow geopolitics.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the key intermediaries in these contacts were entrepreneur Steve Witkoff and the US president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.Witkoff, describing the desired outcome, said that Russia, Ukraine, and the US could become partners, arguing that prosperity itself could reduce the likelihood of future wars.He explained that "if everyone is involved in shared growth and profits, that will become a natural barrier to new conflicts."
However, the leak of the draft provoked a sharp reaction in Europe and Kyiv.Politicians saw the document as a near-complete set of Russian approaches that cross Ukrainian "red lines."European countries fear that Moscow could reap commercial benefits despite armed aggression and the forcible redrawing of borders.Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk characterized the situation as "not about peace, but about business."
The White House views the possibility of economic agreements as a tool for stabilization.Sources close to the White House, cited by The Wall Street Journal, claim that the president's inner circle sees an opportunity for American companies to gain advantageous positions in post-war Russia.In conversations, Russian business representatives openly stated that they would prefer a partnership with the US over Europe, where the peace plan has been criticized.
The article notes that the negotiations offer enormous opportunities: the resumption of Arctic projects, gas production, and the purchase of Nord Stream 2 were discussed, while oil giants, including ExxonMobil, consulted on a possible return to Sakhalin projects.According to European intelligence agencies, business groups close to Putin are holding informal talks on rare earth metal production in Siberia and on the Arctic shelf..."
"Rep. Don Bacon says White House lacks 'moral clarity' on Ukraine
Jacob Wendler
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.)
called Sunday on the Trump administration to refocus its energy on
defending Ukraine’s sovereignty in peace talks with Russia.
Bacon
said the White House was sending “mixed signals” regarding the ongoing
negotiations with Russian and Ukrainian officials as bipartisan
criticism of an initial 28-point peace plan grows louder.
“I
would like to see the president be a stronger advocate for the free
country, the sovereign country of Ukraine that wants to be a democracy,
wants to be allied with us, and have a little more clear-eyed view of
who Putin is, that Putin is the invader,” Bacon said during an interview
on ABC’s “This Week” with Jonathan Karl.
“He's the dictator. He has murdered all of his opponents. But I just don't see that moral clarity coming from the White House.”
The initial proposal —
which Bacon described as “a surrender document” — echoed many of the key
demands of the Kremlin, including territorial concessions from Ukraine
and limits on the size of its military.
That plan sparked bipartisan backlash and skepticism from Europe as U.S. allies warn
that the proposal lacks key security guarantees for Ukraine...
Bacon — who sits on the
House Armed Services Committee — said he hopes for President Donald
Trump to more forcefully call out Russian President Vladimir Putin’s
aggression.
"We need
moral clarity dealing with Putin," Bacon said. "He does not want a
peace agreement with Ukraine that leaves Ukraine a sovereign country,
that can be allied with the West, that can be part of the EU and free
markets. He wants to control another third of Ukraine. He would like to
make Ukraine a vassal state. So I don't know why the administration
keeps pursuing the pointless here."
He added that the U.S. should be focused on arming Ukraine with the
weapons and air defense systems it needs to fend off Russian attacks as
opposed to “a foreign policy based on greed” that centers agreements on
rare earth minerals and natural gas pipelines."
***
In other news, the Hill cites the very valid concerns of another Republican politician, Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio):
"...The orchestration of inserting [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s
voice before [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky’s is very
concerning, and I think the White House should be very concerned about
any efforts to orchestrate Putin’s voice at the White House before
Zelensky’s because Ukraine’s sovereignty and security needs to be
preeminent..."
"How to understand whether peace can be made with Putin
Igor Eisenberg, Blogger, Professor of Computer Science
November 30, 2025
...What you need to know to understand whether peace can be made with Putin:
The Ukrainian delegation led by Rustem Umerov has departed for Florida, where it will hold talks with Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner.
The composition of the American delegation is determined by Trump's political style.In this sense, it's surprising that, along with the 47th president's friend, business partner, and golf buddy, Witkoff, and his son-in-law, Kushner, a real professional official—Secretary of State Rubio—will be participating in the negotiations.In other words, the American side will be represented by one adult.However, he must act prudently, lest the son-in-law complain to the father-in-law.
The reality is that Vitkoff and Kushner will try to persuade Ukraine to accept as many of Russia's conditions as possible (preferably, all 28, in their view), while Ukrainian representatives must politely insist, expressing gratitude to the 47th president for his extraordinary efforts at every turn.
The reality is that the war can only end in one of two ways: either Ukraine agrees to all Russian conditions, meaning it agrees to capitulate (which is what Vitkoff and Kushner would prefer), or Russia is faced with the fact that it no longer has the resources to continue the war due to a collapsing economy and a lack of money.
Those looking for something in between these two options will find only some version of the infamous Munich Agreement of September 30, 1938, which opened the gates to the hell of World War II..."
"An 84-year-old survivor of the siege of St. Petersburg was detained for an anti-war picket
Olga Ganyukova, November 30, 2025
In St. Petersburg, police detained 84-year-old Lyudmila Vasilyeva for holding a solo anti-war picket on Palace Square.The retiree, a survivor of the Siege of Leningrad, refused to remove her poster, despite demands from three officers.
She had previously been detained and fined multiple times for participating in similar protests, according to Russian media reports.
It was reported that Vasilyeva was immediately taken to the police station after unfurling a poster during a solo picket.
Earlier in the spring, she was fined 10,000 rubles for a poster that read, "People, stop the war! We are responsible for peace on planet Earth."
In April, the survivor of the siege was already charged with "discrediting" the army due to anti-war pickets.This elderly woman, who survived the war and the siege, now faces trial for her anti-war stance, which highlights contemporary realities in Russia."
The BBC has a report about Vasilyeva's previous (spring) protest.
"Gen. Ben Hodges Explains Why Russia Is Launching Drones Over Europe and How to Stop It
November 30, 2025
Russian drones over European countries – this is not yet the beginning of World War III, but Russia will do it until it feels real consequences, and so far it does not feel any consequences.This opinion was expressed in an interview with Novosti.LIVE by the former commander of the US Army in Europe, Ben Hodges.
“The same applies to the shadow fleet, the underwater infrastructure and all the ‘gray’ operations. This is done, firstly, to distract European countries and scare the population, so that they say: ‘Do not support Ukraine, we do not want war with Russia’. This is the main goal of the Kremlin,” said Hodges.
Secondly, in his words, the Russians are doing this “to check the reaction, to study the defense of Europe – logistics, bases, reaction time.”
“And this will continue until European leaders start talking to their people like adults: ‘Russia is doing this, this is a threat, this is a war against us,’” he noted.
Only then, Hodges said, will the Kremlin feel the real consequences.
He expressed hope that Europe will act before there is “a real catastrophe somewhere near the airport in Munich, Frankfurt, Copenhagen or Brussels.”"
"Portnikov voiced Putin's new goal for Ukraine, which many don't want to understand: "All of this will happen"
Journalist Vitaly Portnikov suggested that Putin has changed the war's goals in an attempt to destroy Ukraine's energy sector
Vitaly Portnikov warned Ukrainians about a plan to completely destroy our country, which may now be a priority for the Kremlin: "I think that Russia currently has such plans to create uninhabitable territories. This is the main challenge for the coming years of the war."
The political analyst voiced his forecast for Ukraine in the coming years of the war during a conversation with Igor Eidman on YouTube.
"Of course, there are risks. Constant missile attacks on Ukraine continue. Russia is trying to destroy the Ukrainian energy grid and thus freeze Ukraine. Attempts will be made to carry out further attacks, ultimately destroying the Ukrainian energy system. At the very least, there will be an attempt to divide Ukraine energetically along the opposite banks of the Dnieper. All of this will happen. This kind of activity will continue," the publicist confidently stated.
Portnikov also noted: "It's absolutely clear that Putin is trying to replace the advance of his army in the East, which is proceeding at a snail's pace and where Putin has been forced to retreat several times, with the transformation of Ukraine into a lifeless desert, although many don't want to understand this. What's so special about this? That this is the first territory conquered by Russia that is turning into a lifeless desert? Look at Siberia, look at the territories Russia took from Finland after the Winter War.""
"The Guardian: Trump's policies make Europe realize it's left alone with Russia,
Karina Bovsunovskaya, 11/29/25
Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, who currently represents the United States on the world stage and advises Russia on how to defeat the American leader, admitted to having little knowledge of history, and in May, he even told the Atlantic magazine that he watched several documentaries on Netflix to correct this.
According to The Guardian, judging by his four visits to Moscow, he generally treats Russia like any other country, and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin like any other world leader.
Specifically, Witkoff told interviewer Tucker Carlson that he was confident that Russia would not want to seize new territory in Europe once it had four regions of Ukraine.
"I think there's this idea: 'We should all be like Winston Churchill—the Russians are going to sweep across Europe.' I find that absurd," Trump's special envoy emphasized.
Witkoff also added:
"I don't think Putin is a bad person. It's a complicated situation, this war, and all the circumstances that led to it. You know, it's never just one person, right?"
In his view, Russia sincerely strives for peace, and Trump also holds a similarly benevolent view of Putin.US Vice President J.D. Vance, in particular, ridiculed the idea that Putin has expansionist plans.
According to him, the Russian dictator is not Hitler.
For Europe, this means that no matter how often it tries to push Trump away from Russia, he always returns to his natural sympathy for Putin.Every time Europe feels it's on the verge of convincing Trump that Russia is an aggressor threatening European security and, by extension, the United States, Trump gives Putin another chance, "two more weeks," another phone call.Trump's only unwavering conviction is that Ukraine can't win the war and must minimize its losses.
At the same time, former French President François Hollande stated:
"We are living through a historic and dramatic moment. Historic because this plan not only signifies Ukraine's capitulation, but also the transfer of Europe to the custodianship of a Russian-American condominium. Dramatic because for Ukraine, it means the final loss of a third of its territory and offers no security guarantees that would protect it from further Russian aggression. It is also dramatic because this plan is nothing more than Trump's acceptance of Vladimir Putin's demands, reducing Europe to the role of besieged observer."
However, as journalists argue, Europe has now learned to react to Trump's periodic attempts to justify and reward Putin.
Regarding the US "peace plan,"... the project was so one-sided and prescriptive about European security that it was indefensible...
Europe must now realize that it must resolve the Russian issue independently.Unlike Alaska, this time the US was drawn into signing on to Russian plans to remake Europe in Russia's interests.Thus, according to French historian Françoise Thom, the US has become complicit in the destruction of international law.
Meanwhile, some figures, such as Kallas, insist that Russia could be pushed to the brink of running out of funds, especially if Europe finds a legal way to provide Ukraine with a reparations loan using the Russian central bank's frozen assets, worth 210 billion euros.
But Europe has so often promised to come to its senses.Its worst enemy may not be Russia, but inertia."
"Trump envoy Witkoff suggested Ukraine seek zero tariffs from US rather than Tomahawks – WSJ
Mariya Yemets, KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO
The article
recalls an episode in October when Trump was close to approving Tomahawk
missiles for Ukraine, but after a conversation with Russian leader
Vladimir Putin – and by the time Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
arrived in Washington – he changed his mind.
Witkoff reportedly then took it upon himself to persuade the Ukrainian side that the US had a "more interesting offer" for them.
The special envoy argued that a "handful of missiles"
would not enable Ukraine to achieve any meaningful results and instead
suggested that Ukraine request a 10-year tariff exemption from Trump,
which "would supercharge their economy".
It
is worth noting that Witkoff's proposal, if he indeed made it, reflects
a lack of understanding of bilateral trade realities. The United States
ranks only 16th in Ukraine's export structure, accounting for about 2%
of total exports. Thus, a tariff exemption would likely have had little
impact."
***
For Trump and his minions, everything is about money. Also, note that the perk is supposed to last only for a decade.
"Trump is selling out Ukraine, but the tide may be turning
John Bolton
Heading into Thanksgiving, Washington’s Ukraine policy had already descended into chaos. Then it got worse.
A leaked phone call appeared to reveal that Steve Witkoff, Donald Trump’s friend and envoy, had essentially connived against Ukraine by advising Yuri Ushakov, Vladimir Putin’s foreign-policy adviser, on how to flatter the president.
Neither the Kremlin nor the White House have denied that the call took place. Indeed, Trump has appeared to admit it...
By the weekend, Volodymyr Zelensky had little good news to celebrate, other than the disappearance of Trump’s initial Thanksgiving deadline
to accept his peace plan. What precipitated this latest effort to
produce a Russia-Ukraine agreement remained a mystery, as did who was
actually functioning as America’s chief diplomat and what the ultimate
objectives were.
What is not mysterious is how typically Trumpian it is: no coherent
national security strategy, from America’s perspective or Ukraine’s;
negotiations conducted haphazardly and asymmetrically, ignorant of facts
on the ground; key issues left vague or unresolved; self-defeating
deadlines and, like used-car salesmen, endless happy talk of an imminent
deal.
First, from the Witkoff-Ushakov conversation we can conclude that the
latest chaos was instigated by Witkoff, optimistically broaching it to
Ushakov after the recent Gaza deal... Witkoff’s apparent
first move after speaking to Ushakov was to conjure a Putin-Trump phone
call that derailed Zelensky’s efforts to persuade Trump to supply Kyiv with Tomahawk missiles. This is not normal “honest brokering”. This is simply pro-Russian.
Second,
Trump clearly sought to present the “deal” to Zelensky as a
“take-it-or-leave-it” proposition. He could either knuckle under, or, as
Trump so graciously put it, “continue to fight his little heart out”.
Dan Driscoll, the army secretary, reportedly warned Zelensky that
Ukraine was in a difficult position militarily, with NBC News claiming
this went so far as to tell Kyiv it was facing imminent defeat, which
had not previously been the US assessment...
Third, Trump’s only
objective is to make a deal, any deal. Witkoff suggested to Ushakov that
Putin tell Trump the two negotiators had, as with Gaza, “discussed a
very similar 20-point plan to peace”.
Witkoff
added that “the president will give me a lot of space and discretion to
get to the deal”... Witkoff’s characterisation of Trump’s mindset confirms that
Trump has no substantive policy red lines. His real objective is the
Nobel Peace Prize. Perhaps he worries that the Nobel Committee’s rules
require he be nominated by January 31 for a Ukraine deal, hence the rush
before Thanksgiving.
Accordingly, for
whatever bizarre reasons, the West is again faced with preventing this
latest Trumpian diplomatic irruption from working to the Kremlin’s
advantage. To succeed, Ukraine’s friends must finally acknowledge that
Trump couldn’t care less about the impact of any settlement on Ukraine.
He cares about its effect on him.
It
has been reported that the White House will not consider security
guarantees for Ukraine until the “peace deal” is concluded. This makes
sense for Trump, since he cares about the here-and-now, not the
far-distant future, such as three years from now when he is no longer
president. For Ukraine, however, any “peace deal” without embedded
security guarantees is not merely hopelessly incomplete, but
existentially threatening. Separating security guarantees from a potential “peace deal” is what Russia wants, not Ukraine or presumably NATO..."
"I wish to remind our allies that NATO was created to defend the West against the Soviet aggression, that is against Russia. And its foundation was solidarity, not egoistic interests. I hope that nothing has changed."
From the Wall Street Journal / MSN, November 29, 2025:
"New Peace Push Offers Clues to Fundamental Question: What Does Putin Want?
A
28-point plan and President Vladimir Putin’s response to it have
offered some of the best clues yet to a fundamental question bedeviling
peace talks: What does the Russian leader want?
The
plan, which has been revised since it was leaked last week, drew
pushback from Ukraine and its supporters in Congress and Europe for
hewing to Moscow’s uncompromising vision for a postwar settlement.
Still, Putin has shown little interest in signing it.
On Thursday, he described the proposal
as a list of questions—each one requiring hard work to resolve—and he
made one of his most explicit demands yet for the territory that has
been at the center of negotiations.
“When
Ukrainian troops leave the territories they hold, then the fighting
will stop,” Putin said. “If they don’t, then we’ll achieve that through
military means.”
Ukraine
has vowed to never cede territory to Russia. But the problem for
Ukraine and many of its Western backers is that Russia’s stated goals
extend far beyond conquering eastern Ukraine—an impression that was only
reinforced by elements of the 28-point plan.
Putin’s
statements suggest that ultimately the Russian leader wants to deprive
Ukraine of its sovereignty, restore Moscow’s influence over Kyiv and
roll back the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s encroachment into a
region that Russia sees as its sphere of influence. That would mean any
agreement that doesn’t satisfy Putin’s core objectives would likely be a
prelude to a new invasion aimed at securing them.
“Anything that prevents a future war is unacceptable for Putin,” said
Russian economist Konstantin Sonin, a professor at the University of
Chicago Harris School of Public Policy. “There is no future for Russia
which does not involve continuing to fight for Ukraine until Ukraine is
fully integrated into Russia.”...
White House special envoy Steve Witkoff... drafted the plan with input from Kremlin confidant Kirill Dmitriev. A transcript of a call
published by Bloomberg News this week showed Witkoff advised a top
Kremlin aide, Yuri Ushakov, on how Putin should approach a conversation
with Trump.
In
the call, Witkoff suggested to Ushakov that territory in eastern
Ukraine might be the key to unlocking a peace deal. “Me to you, I know
what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done. Donetsk and maybe a
land swap somewhere,” he said.
The
plan Witkoff drafted called for limiting the size of Ukraine’s
military, blocking its path to joining NATO and prohibiting the
alliance’s troops from stepping foot on Kyiv’s territory. But Putin’s
own words indicate Moscow is interested in much more.
Putin
has often referred to the “root causes” of the conflict. He invokes
centurieslong historical grievances to justify the invasion and advance
claims that any moves by Kyiv toward the West are a historical
aberration.
In
essays and speeches throughout his quarter-century rule, Putin has
described modern Ukraine as an artificial construct created by early
Soviet leaders and said Ukrainians and Russians are one people. In an
essay he published in July 2021, which was made mandatory reading for
all Russian soldiers and is now seen as the prelude to his invasion of
Ukraine the following year, he lamented Ukraine’s drift away from Russia
and promised to reverse it.
“The
formation of an ethnically pure Ukrainian state, aggressive toward
Russia, is comparable in its consequences to the use of weapons of mass
destruction against us,” he wrote.
Putin
describes Ukraine as part of a single “historical and spiritual space”
with Russia. In a February 2022 speech announcing the invasion, he said
Ukraine had been hijacked by hostile forces intent on wiping out the
Russian speakers living in its eastern provinces. He singled out the
diminishing influence of the Russian-backed Orthodox Church in Ukraine.
The
28-point plan would oblige Ukraine to adopt rules on the protection of
linguistic minorities and religious tolerance, a clear nod to Putin’s
complaints. It would also compel Kyiv to roll back many restrictions
placed on the use of Russian in public spaces.
Prominent
Russian figures have helped broadcast Putin’s narrative, among them
Alexander Dugin, whom some call “Putin’s brain” because he long promoted
ideas Putin ultimately adopted.
In
a recent post on Telegram, Dugin described work under way for “mass
treatment and psychological rehabilitation” of Ukrainians. “Ukraine will
be entirely ours within at most two years—quite possibly much sooner,”
Dugin wrote on Telegram on Sunday. “There will no longer be even the
slightest trace of sovereignty there, since Ukrainians are absolutely
incapable of using it.”
A draft treaty the Kremlin drew up with Ukrainian officials in Istanbul
in the spring of 2022, which was ultimately not agreed upon, provided a
clue to the concessions Russia might try to force from Ukraine if
Western military support dries up and Moscow’s forces continue to make
significant territorial gains.
That
draft treaty, which Putin has cited as a starting point for talks,
included a ban on heavy weaponry for Ukraine and would render it a
“permanently neutral state that doesn’t participate in military blocs.”
It capped its armed forces at 85,000 troops, less than 10% of its
current strength, and set limits on its long-range weapons..."
The photo below, from Kyiv after a Russian attack in the night of Nov 29, 2025 (source), tells you all you need to know about Russia's alleged readiness and willingness for peace that the nominal leader of the free world Trump keeps talking about.
"Why JD Vance is fighting the GOP establishment over Russia
Sophia Tesfaye
The proposal calls for Ukraine to significantly reduce the size of its military, cede land to Russia
— including land that Russia does not currently control..., relinquish its long-range missiles and
vow to not join NATO. According to Reuters, the plan drew some elements from a Russian document.
In
exchange, Moscow would face few meaningful concessions and win a full
return to the global economy, with the erasure of every sanction imposed
since Putin’s first invasion in 2014.
“He’ll have to like it, and if he doesn’t like it, they’ll just have to keep fighting, I guess,” President Donald Trump said of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Nov. 21. “At some point, he’s going to have to accept something.”
To many Republicans, the proposal’s asymmetry was glaring. To Vance, it was the entire point...
During a combustible White House visit in February, Vance
infamously berated Zelenskyy for what he called insufficient gratitude
for U.S. support. The plan’s posture toward Kyiv reflects that animus,
along with Vance’s broader “realist” world view...
Congressional Republicans — who spent two years accusing former President Joe Biden of weakness on Russia — are openly revolting against the Trump-backed plan.
“Putin has spent the entire year trying to play President Trump for a fool,” former Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell,
R. Ky., said in a statement on Friday. “If Administration officials are
more concerned with appeasing Putin than securing real peace, then the
President ought to find new advisors.”
McConnell, who spent years branded as “Moscow Mitch” by Democrats and is retiring after nearly 40 years in the Senate, took to social media
on Monday to press his point. “[T]hose who think pressuring the victim
and appeasing the aggressor will bring peace are kidding themselves.
Which difficult concessions are we pressing Russia to make? How does
limiting Ukraine’s defenses against future aggression increase the
likelihood of enduring peace? The price and stability of peace matters,
and our credibility is on the line. Allies and adversaries are watching:
Will America hold firm against aggression or will we reward it?”
In response, Vance exploded.
“This
is a ridiculous attack on the president’s team, which has worked
tirelessly to clean up the mess in Ukraine that Mitch–always eager to
write blank checks to Biden’s foreign policy–left us,” Vance wrote Monday on X, asking if the Republican candidates in Kentucky who want to replace McConnell “share his views.”
From there, Vance went into a characteristic tirade
about America’s decay, housing prices and what he decried as the
obsession with Europe of the “beltway GOP” instead of over the
struggling “real Americans” at home.
The implication of Vance’s invective was clear: Anyone supporting Ukraine is part of a decadent elite. Donald Trump Jr. joined in on Nov. 25 to claim McConnell was “bitter” because voters had rejected his “globalist agenda.”
At the Halifax
International Security Forum over the weekend, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.,
who is retiring, said McConnell’s criticism didn’t go far enough. He warned against “making Putin feel like he has a win here.”
While the resistance to the administration is strongest in the Senate, some House Republicans have also sounded warnings.
Senior House Republican Michael McCaul of Texas, who sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee, said
on ABC’s “This Week” he would “not advise” Ukraine to sign the peace
plan without more ironclad security guarantees. Retiring GOP Rep. Don
Bacon of Nebraska dubbed the peace plan “Witkoff’s Ukrainian surrender plan,” placing the blame with Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, who is headed to Moscow to sell the deal.
Mike Pompeo, who served as secretary of state during Trump’s first administration, told
Fox News that “any so-called peace deal that limits Ukraine’s ability
to defend itself would look more like a surrender” and leave Putin more
“emboldened.”
But
leaders like McCaul, Pompeo and McConnell represent the last remnants
of the Republican Party that believed in alliances, deterrence and
American power abroad. Vance is the face of the new GOP — nationalist,
grievance-driven, suspicious of international commitments and convinced
that America’s real enemy is its own governing class.
By inserting his
closest ally into the center of the Russia-Ukraine negotiations, Vance
has turned a global security crisis into a proving ground for his
emerging political machine. When McConnell blasted the peace plan, he
wasn’t just criticizing Trump. He was threatening Vance’s ascendancy.
And Vance reacted like a man who knows he now has the muscle to punch back."
"Trump thought Ukraine would agree to a new peace plan because of the "Mindich affair" – Atlantic
Nadiya Danishchuk, November 28, 2025
The "Mindich affair" played a role in the US's renewed pressure on Ukraine, attempting to force its capitulation so that Donald Trump could "end" another war by adding it to his list.Vice President J.D. Vance believed that this massive corruption scandal would force Kyiv to agree to the 28-point "peace plan" being drafted in Moscow.
However, these "peace efforts" by Trump also failed, according to The Atlantic.
The publication notes that despite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's lack of direct involvement in corruption, Vance and other White House officials believed this would not leave the Ukrainians "in a position where they could resist a peace agreement."
However, the Trump administration miscalculated..."
From the Atlantic publication itself:
"In the list of campaign promises from
Donald Trump, the one about the war in Ukraine stood out for the number
of times he repeated it—“I’ll have that thing ended in 24 hours”—and for
the undeniable way he failed to deliver... Still he continues to try. But his efforts have not resembled a peace
process so much as a pendulum, swinging between the Russian and
Ukrainian positions, with occasional stops in the middle to express
frustration over the whole affair.
The latest swing to the Russian side this month has been a doozy. Last
week, the White House embraced a 28-point “peace plan” stuffed with the
Kremlin’s demands, and Trump gave Ukraine five days to accept it. The
task of delivering the ultimatum fell to Dan Driscoll, the U.S. Army
secretary, who arrived in Kyiv just as the plan leaked to the media. Its
provisions looked to many Ukrainians like a set of demands for their
capitulation..."
Ukraine is literally doing NATO's job, and is the only country in the world that is fulfilling the Alliance's destiny.
NATO was designed to deter no other war than with Russia. However, Kyiv
is still not invited to the Alliance, says Garry Kasparov, a Russian
political activist and world chess champion, in his passionate speech at
the Halifax Security Forum held in Washington.
The West owes to Ukraine "everything." But instead, the proposals are "let's sacrifice them."
"NATO was built to fight only one war, not Afghanistan, not
Syria, one war: to save free Europe from Russian aggression. Ukraine is
the only country that is fighting this war, and we're still discussing
should include them or not," he claimed.
Kasparov said that NATO is not strong and effectively "doesn't exist," adding that it's fake and only a four-letter word. And it's not about "how many weapons you have," but "I'm willing to fight and die."
"Oh, it’s nice that you have a Canadian-led brigade in Latvia. Will
they shoot if the Russians cross the border? We know the answer. It will
take ages to negotiate," he continued.
Kasparov said that if not for Ukraine standing in front of Russian tanks, they would already be in Poland.
"Four years Ukraine is fighting for the whole of Europe. The only
reason you are still sitting here celebrating (NATO) is because Ukraine
is dying every minute. It's a massive sacrifice," he stressed.
Only thanks to Ukraine is Russia not fulfilling Putin’s dream of restoring the Russian empire, Kasparov explained.
However, if Kyiv is forced to accept a US-proposed deal, which has
been dubbed a "Munich-style agreement," then it is clear that Russian
President Vladimir Putin "will realize that dream."
"And then, you guys are next. But you are not willing to fight," Kasparov underlined.
He also appealed to the US senators to take action against the deal,
which demands that Ukraine abandon its NATO membership aspirations, lose
Donbas, and forgive Russia for 190,000 war crimes.
"As a Russian, I also feel guilty—that’s why I cannot simply tell
him, 'Show Trump the middle finger.' But how many senators are here? Are
you going to tell Donald Trump he cannot do that?" he asked.
Kasparov says that the US-proposed deal isn't even worth serious
discussion, as Trump’s business partner made it to enrich his family and
sell Ukraine.
"How can we seriously discuss Ukraine giving up fortifications that are saving Europe?"
he said, mentioning a series of Ukraine's protection structures located
in the east of the country, which have been holding the Russians from
the complete occupation of the region for 11 years.
These obstacles and digouts would be taken if Russia takes Donbas.
He said the West has every advantage, in terms of military,
political, and economic power, but it is still losing the war with
Russia.
According to him, Chinese Xi Jinping and other pro-Russian leaders "are celebrating."
"Russia has North Koreans, Cubans, Africans. They have volunteers. And we are still talking about escalation," he added."
"U.S. Army secretary warned Ukraine of imminent defeat while pushing initial peace plan
Dan De Luce
In a meeting with Ukrainian officials in Kyiv last week, U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll delivered a grim assessment.
Driscoll told his counterparts their troops faced a dire situation on the battlefield and would suffer an imminent defeat against Russian forces, two sources with knowledge of the matter told NBC News.
The Russians were
ramping up the scale and pace of their aerial attacks, and they had the
ability to fight on indefinitely, Driscoll told them, according to the
sources. The situation for Ukraine would only get worse over time, he
continued, and it was better to negotiate a peace settlement now rather
than end up in an even weaker position in the future.
And
there was more bad news. The U.S. delegation also said America’s
defense industry could not keep supplying Ukraine with the weapons and
air defenses at the rate needed to protect the country’s infrastructure
and population, the sources said.
Driscoll’s message came
after he had presented a U.S.-backed peace plan that Kyiv officials
viewed as a capitulation to Moscow, according to the two sources.
“The message was basically — you are losing,” one of the sources said, “and you need to accept the deal.”
The
meeting between Driscoll and the Ukrainians was part of an effort by
some Trump administration officials to press the Ukrainians to accept
the new U.S.-backed peace proposal
without delay, even though it embraced Russia’s maximalist demands and
required painful concessions from Kyiv’s government, multiple current
and former Western officials said.
Ukraine politely
declined to sign on to the peace plan as it was presented, and the
proposal has been heavily revised since the discussions between Driscoll
and Ukrainian officials last week.
The
meeting was just the latest example of a long-running rift inside the
Trump administration over how to end the war in Ukraine. The split
features a looming potential political rivalry between two former
senators and potential presidential hopefuls positioning themselves for
2028: Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
One camp, including
Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff and other officials, views Ukraine as
the primary obstacle to peace and favors using U.S. leverage to force
Kyiv to make major compromises, according to multiple current and former
officials.
The
other camp, represented by Rubio and other officials, sees Russia as the
culprit for having launched an unprovoked invasion of its neighbor and
says Moscow will relent only if it pays a price for its aggression
through sanctions and other pressure...
The frenetic diplomacy began last week after a purported 28-point U.S. peace plan leaked to the media...
White House officials told reporters it was an American proposal, even
though the document embraced Russia’s repeated demands to force Ukraine
to cede territory it controls, scale back its military and give up ever
joining the NATO alliance. Some elements of the plan contradicted the
Trump administration’s previously stated positions, including language
that implied U.S. military forces would be barred from Poland.
Republican and Democratic senators said Rubio had told them
it was a plan drafted by the Russians. But Rubio later said their
account was false, and he and the White House later insisted it was a
U.S. proposal with Russian and Ukrainian “input.”
In
an unusual move, the White House chose Driscoll, the Army secretary, to
brief the Ukrainians on the proposal, instead of a senior diplomat.
Driscoll, an old Yale Law School classmate of Vance’s, was headed to
Ukraine on a previously scheduled visit to discuss drone technology, NBC
News previously reported...
Trump, meanwhile, ramped up pressure on Ukraine, telling reporters that Zelenskyy’s choice was to accept a peace deal or “continue to fight his little heart out.”
"According to FT, European officials in Kyiv asked Driscoll whether
Washington saw Russian war crimes accountability as essential. FT says
he deflected their questions, angering them further. FT quotes a former
senior defense official who said Driscoll often shifts political
positions easily, while another European official called his tone with
western diplomats “nauseating”.
FT says that Driscoll echoed US Vice-President JD Vance, saying: “There are cities, locations under dispute that will be in Russian
hands, it is just a matter of time. If we do not recognize that, then
the decision to fight must weigh: how many lives are you willing to
sacrifice? The deal does not get better from here, it gets worse.”
The New York Times earlier reported that Driscoll used Russia’s growing threat to “sell” a quick peace deal that would harm Ukraine."
"The Kremlin is thwarting all US and Ukrainian efforts and has no intention of making concessions, according to The Times
Bogdan Frolov, 27.11.25
US President Donald Trump is trying to create unstoppable momentum for peace in Ukraine, but his efforts appear to have hit a dead end—the Kremlin has made it clear it will not make concessions.Moscow has shown no interest in an agreement that does not fully satisfy its demands, despite several days of diplomatic marathon involving American, European, Russian, and Ukrainian officials.
While Kyiv and its European partners managed to defeat the US-backed 28-point plan, which many considered a de facto capitulation, it has long been clear that any settlement acceptable to Ukraine will be automatically rejected by Moscow, The Times reports.
When asked whether peace is imminent, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov replied, "It's too early to talk about that."Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also denied Trump's claim that Moscow had agreed to soften some of its demands.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Moscow will reject any plan that does not rule out Ukraine's accession to NATO, does not involve the transfer of territory to Russia, and does not allow the Kremlin to limit the size of the Ukrainian army.
Some critics express the belief that Ukrainian officials are well aware that there is virtually no real chance of a peace agreement, and Kyiv's participation in the negotiations is primarily aimed at preventing Trump from again accusing Zelenskyy of disrupting the "peace process."
"The purpose of Ukraine's participation in Trump's peace process is to prevent itself from being blamed for its disruption. Everyone understands this, but pretends not to. I sympathize with everyone who is forced to participate in this farce," Nikolai Beleskov, an analyst with the "Come Back Alive" foundation, wrote on social media.
Although the US no longer provides direct financial aid to Ukraine, Washington continues to share critical intelligence that allows Kyiv to launch long-range strikes into Russian territory.America also sells weapons to allies, who then transfer them to Ukraine, including Patriot missiles, which are vital for defending the capital.
However, the White House recently stated that it could not continue these sales "indefinitely."The comment was perceived as a veiled warning: supplies could be cut off if Zelenskyy does not agree to a deal soon..."
"Trump Envoy Busted Plotting With Russia to Sabotage Ukraine
Laura Esposito
Steve Witkoff is teaching a master class to Russian officials on how to get what they want from Donald Trump.
On
Oct. 14, Trump’s special envoy advised Vladimir Putin’s top foreign
policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, on how the Russian dictator should curry
favor with Trump before broaching a proposed peace plan between Russia
and war-torn Ukraine, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.
During the five-minute call, Witkoff told Putin’s henchman that the
Russian president should personally phone Trump, 79, ahead of his
planned meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky—where
Zelensky hoped, but ultimately failed, to secure long-range Tomahawk
cruise missiles—to congratulate him on the Gaza ceasefire.
“My recommendation…. I
would make the call and just reiterate that you congratulate the
president on this achievement, that you supported it, you supported it,
that you respect that he is a man of peace, and you’re just, you’re
really glad to have seen it happen,” Witkoff told his foreign
counterpart.
“So
I would say that. I think from that it’s going to be a really good
call,” Witkoff said, to which Ushakov replied: “Ok, ok my friend. I
think that very point our leaders could discuss. Hey Steve, I agree with
you that he will congratulate, he will say that Mr. Trump is a real
peace man and so and so. That he will say.”
Later,
Witkoff all but outlined exactly how the conversation between the two
leaders should unfold—advising the Putin aide to present a peace plan in
a positive, if highly misleading, light.
“Maybe he says to
President Trump: you know, Steve and Yuri discussed a very similar
20-point plan to (Gaza’s plan for) peace and that could be something
that we think might move the needle a little bit, we’re open to those
sorts of things—to explore what it’s going to take to get a peace deal
done,” he said.
Witkoff
then seemingly acknowledged that Ukraine would make numerous
concessions to Russia—more than the president needed to know.
“Now,
me to you, I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done:
Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere,” Witkoff said.
“But I’m saying instead of talking like that, let’s talk more hopefully
because I think we’re going to get to a deal here. And I think Yuri, the
president, will give me a lot of space and discretion to get to the
deal.”
Throughout the conversation, Witkoff asserted his admiration for the Kremlin’s leader.
“You
know I have the deepest respect for President Putin,” Witkoff said at
one point. When he mentioned Zelensky’s forthcoming visit to the White
House, he said he’d be meeting the Ukrainian president only “because
they want me there.”
“But I think if possible we have the call with your boss before that Friday meeting,” he said.
Sure
enough, Trump wrote on Truth Social a few days later that Putin had
congratulated him on the “Great Accomplishment of Peace in the Middle
East,” and suggested his “Success in the Middle East will help in our
negotiation in attaining an end to the War with Russia/Ukraine.”
His meeting with Zelensky later that week then reportedly ended in a fiery shouting match.
After the call, Witkoff
met with Kirill Dmitriev, an economic adviser to Putin and the head of
the Russian Direct Investment Fund, in Miami alongside Trump’s
son-in-law Jared Kushner, Reuters reported.
In a phone call between Ushakov and Dmitriev, also leaked to Bloomberg,
the Putin advisers agreed to draft their own version of a peace plan
and pass it to Witkoff, whom they believed would keep it “as close to
[Russia’s version] as possible.”
“I think we’ll just make this paper from our position, and I’ll
informally pass it along, making it clear that it’s all informal,”
Dmitriev said. “And let them do like their own. But, I don’t think
they’ll take exactly our version, but at least it’ll be as close to it
as possible.”
The initial draft of
what is now believed to be Trump’s 28-point peace plan—presided over by
Witkoff—was slammed by bipartisan lawmakers over the weekend as a
complete cave-in to Putin in recent days. It involved Ukraine handing
over territory to Russia, ending its hopes of joining NATO, and inviting
Russia to rejoin the G8—and has even been accused of being written in
Moscow before being presented as a U.S.-led proposal.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has since revised a new 19-point plan that Ukraine has tentatively agreed to, CNN reported.
As of Tuesday
afternoon, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, a Yale Law School buddy of JD
Vance’s, has taken center stage as the man delivering the latest Ukraine
peace proposal to the Russians.
The
Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment. The
president defended Witkoff aboard Air Force One on Tuesday while en
route to Palm Beach.
“That’s a standard thing,” Trump said, adding he had not heard the audio himself.
“He’s
gotta sell this to Ukraine, he’s gonna sell Ukraine to Russia. That’s
what a dealmaker does. I haven’t heard it but I heard it was standard
negotiation.”
Meanwhile, speaking to NewsNation,
White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung said: “This story
proves one thing: Special Envoy Witkoff talks to officials in both
Russia and Ukraine nearly every day to achieve peace, which is exactly
what President Trump appointed him to do.”"
