Senators denounce Trump’s Ukraine plan

The proposal rewards Vladimir Putin and sends a signal to other dictators, critics say.

- ASSOCIATED PRESS

U.S. senators from both parties critical of President Trump’s approach to ending the Russia-Ukraine war said Saturday that the peace plan he is pushing Kyiv to accept would only reward Moscow for its aggression and send a message to other leaders who have threatened their neighbors.

The 28-point peace plan was crafted by the Trump administration and the Kremlin without Ukraine’s involvement. It acquiesces to many Russian demands that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has categorically rejected on dozens of occasions, including giving up large pieces of territory. Trump says he wants Ukraine to accept the plan by late this week.

“It rewards aggression. This is pure and simple. There’s no ethical, legal, moral, political justification for Russia claiming eastern Ukraine,” Sen. Angus King, a Maine independent who caucuses with Democrats, said in a panel discussion at the Halifax International Security Forum in Canada.

“You think Xi Jinping is paying attention to this? You think Kim Jong Un is paying attention? I mean, this is one of the most serious geopolitical mistakes in my lifetime,” King said.

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Western allies rallied around the war-torn country Saturday as they pushed to revise the U.S. plan seen as favoring Russia despite its invasion of its neighbor. A Ukrainian delegation, bolstered by representatives from France, Germany and the U.K., is preparing for direct talks with Washington in Switzerland on Sunday.