Reuters: US officials concerned about Miami meeting that resulted in 'peace plan'

U.S. officials and lawmakers are growing increasingly concerned about a meeting last month in which representatives of the U.S. Donald Trump met with an envoy of the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, Kirill Dmitriev to develop a plan to end the war. This was reported by the agency Reuters with reference to unnamed interlocutors familiar with the matter.

The meeting took place in Miami in late October and was attended by a special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and Dmitriev.

Dmitriev played a leading role in the negotiations with the US and met with Vitkoff several times this year. The Trump administration has issued a special permit for his entry because he is under sanctions.

According to the two interlocutors, the meeting resulted in a 28-point plan to end the war. The document came as a surprise to U.S. officials in various parts of the administration and caused misunderstandings in embassies across Washington and European capitals, the media reports.

The document, which calls for significant concessions from Ukraine, appears to contradict the tougher stance the Trump administration has recently taken toward Moscow, including sanctions on its energy sector.

It is unclear whether Dmitriev came to the Miami meeting with any Russian demands, and whether they were included in the plan.

Vitkoff, Kushner, and Dmitriev did not respond to the agency's request for comment.

Many senior officials at the State Department and the National Security Council were not informed, according to two sources. Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kelloggwho had been working with the Ukrainians, was also excluded from the talks led by Vitkoff and Dmitriev, they said.

One senior U.S. official said that the Secretary of State Marco Rubio was briefed on the plan, but did not specify when he was informed. The US State Department said that the head of diplomacy was directly involved in the development of the document.

One of the sources said the plan contained material that the Secretary of State had previously rejected. This situation raised concerns within the administration and on Capitol Hill that Vitkoff and Kushner had bypassed the interagency process and that negotiations with Dmitriev had resulted in a plan that was in Russia's best interest.

It includes the demands that Russia has made in the past: that Ukraine cede the land it still controls, recognize Crimea as Russian, and pledge not to join NATO.

"This so-called peace plan has real problems, and I am very skeptical that it will lead to peace. Ukraine should not be forced to give up its land to one of the worst war criminals in the world, Putin," said Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, chairman of the Armed Services Committee.

Republican Senator Mike Rounds told reporters that Rubio had called him and other senators and suggested that the plan had been passed on by Russia to the United States and sent to Ukraine.

"That's not our recommendation, that's not our plan," Rounds said.

But the Secretary of State later denied this, saying that the proposal was developed by Washington.

"It is based on the contribution of the Russian side. But it is also based on Ukraine's previous and ongoing contributions," Rubio wrote.

• October 24 Dmitriev visits the United States for "official" talks, a few days after Trump imposed sanctions on Moscow.
• Axios wrote that Vitkoff is to meet with Dmitriev in Miami.