Russia called the U.S. peace plan a propaganda ploy
The government-run *Rossiyskaya Gazeta* called the new U.S. initiative to end the war in Ukraine “an information bluff by the West.” The author of the critical article, former Russian diplomat Vasily Korchmar, criticized all four points of the plan—from Ukraine’s reconstruction to a ceasefire. At the same time, official Moscow claims it has not received this document and has no official proposals from the U.S.
Russia has criticized the new peace plan that U.S. negotiators are discussing with Ukraine and European partners. A detailed article criticizing the initiative was published on October 14 by the government-run newspaper *Rossiyskaya Gazeta*. The author of the article is Vasily Korchmar, a former Russian diplomat who worked at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He called the American initiative “yet another propaganda bluff by the West” and stated that its proposals do not include concrete steps to resolve the war.
At the same time, it is important to distinguish between the Kremlin’s official position and the author’s assessment. Korchmar is retired, and his article does not constitute an official response from the Russian authorities to the U.S. plan.
What Is Known About the New U.S. Peace Plan
On October 12, Washington Post columnist David Ignatius wrote about the U.S. initiative. He cited a U.S. official familiar with the negotiations.
According to the publication, the plan was discussed on October 9 in Florida at a meeting of representatives from the U.S., Ukraine, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The U.S. side was represented by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. According to the published description, the initiative consists of four main points:
- the reconstruction of Ukraine with international funding;
- security guarantees for Ukraine and Russia;
- restoring Russia’s economic and energy cooperation with Europe;
- a ceasefire along the current front lines while maintaining Russian control over the occupied territories.
According to the American negotiators’ plan, economic opportunities and security guarantees are to be part of the agreements that will help the parties reach a compromise on territorial issues. However, the published description does not mean that all these proposals have already been agreed to by Ukraine, Russia, or European countries. Nor does it imply that a peace agreement has been signed.
What Moscow Has Officially Stated
Prior to Korchmar’s publication, Russian officials had already commented on reports of the new plan. On October 13, Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov stated that the Kremlin had seen reports of the U.S. initiative but had not received the plan itself. On Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also confirmed that Moscow had not received any official proposals.
Lavrov stated that the published reports contain no ideas that could ensure long-term peace. He also expressed his conviction that Ukraine and its European allies could violate a potential ceasefire. This is the Russian minister’s assessment, not a confirmed fact regarding the future behavior of Ukraine or its partners.
What is known about the author of the critical article
Vasily Korchmar previously worked at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He served as chief advisor to the Department for CIS Countries, served as Russia’s consul general in Gyumri, Armenia, and headed the Russian delegation to the Joint Control Commission for the Settlement of the Transnistrian Conflict in 2013–2014. Korchmar is currently retired and serves on the expert council of the organization “Officers of Russia.”
He has previously commented on negotiations regarding the war against Ukraine. In May 2025, ahead of a phone call between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, Korchmar stated that a ceasefire without a monitoring mechanism would be ineffective. In January 2026, on the eve of Putin’s meeting with Steve Witkoff, he also commented on the possible terms of the U.S. plan and identified the territorial issue as one of the main concerns for Moscow.
These previous statements show that Korchmar regularly comments on the negotiations and the possible terms for ending the war. However, his assessments should not automatically be taken as official decisions by the Russian authorities.
How Ukraine reacted to the report on the plan
Dmytro Lytvyn, the Ukrainian president’s communications adviser, also commented on the report regarding the U.S. initiative. According to him, the published description reflects the views of only a portion of the U.S. team.
Lytvyn called it “good PR by the Americans.” Thus, there is no single, coordinated position on the new plan as of yet. According to media reports, U.S. negotiators are discussing possible terms of a settlement with Ukraine and European partners. Moscow, meanwhile, claims it has not officially received the plan, while a Russian government newspaper has published a scathing critique of it.
So far, there have been no reports that the parties have agreed on all four points or that a final peace agreement has been drafted based on them. The further progress of the negotiations will depend on whether the discussions move on to formal proposals and specific agreements. This was reported by .
Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that any Ukrainian peace plan regarding Russia requires his approval. He also expressed hope for a productive meeting with the Ukrainian and Russian leaders in the coming days.
In addition, Zelenskyy and Trump will hold a joint conversation with EU leaders.
