Rubio says leaked Ukraine peace proposal authored by US

It came after several lawmakers claimed Rubio had privately described the document as a Russian “wish list.”

Senators attending the Halifax International Security Forum said Rubio called them as he traveled to Geneva for talks with Ukrainian officials.

“He made it very clear to us that we are the recipients of a proposal that was delivered to one of our representatives,” Sen. Mike Rounds said during a news conference. “It is not our recommendation. It is not our peace plan. It is a proposal that was received, and as an intermediary, we have made arrangements to share it --- and we did not release it. It was leaked.”

Shortly after, Rubio took to US social media company X to reject their account.

“The peace proposal was authored by the U.S. It is offered as a strong framework for ongoing negotiations. It is based on input from the Russian side. But it is also based on previous and ongoing input from Ukraine,” Rubio wrote.

State Department deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott called the account by US lawmakers “blatantly false,” noting that the Trump administration has “consistently maintained, this plan was authored by the United States, with input from both the Russians and Ukrainians.”

The leaked 28-point draft proposal, first reported by US-based news site Axios, appears to require Ukraine to surrender additional territory to Russia, limit the size of its military and abandon its bid to join NATO.

US President Donald Trump has given his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy until Thursday to respond.

Zelenskyy said he faces a tough choice, namely the "loss of our dignity or the risk of losing a key partner."

Earlier Saturday, the leaders of nine European countries plus Japan, Canada and top EU officials, expressed concern about the plan's proposed limitations on Ukraine's armed forces, warning that they "would leave Ukraine vulnerable to future attack."

Russia started its "special military operation" in February 2022 for the "denazification" and demilitarization of Ukraine. Besides limits on the Ukrainian military and barring NATO membership, Moscow wants the Russian language to enjoy official status in Ukraine.