Trump’s $2 Trillion Plan to Cash in on Ukraine ‘Peace’ Leaks; The Daily Beast, November 29, 2025

Adam Downer , The Daily Beast; Trump’s $2 Trillion Plan to Cash in on Ukraine ‘Peace’ Leaks

[Kip Currier: Notice that there's no Trump 2.0 substantive discussion of human rights violations or accountability for Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, abduction of Ukrainian children (see 11/20/25 Euronews "Back from captivity: Ukrainian children abducted by Russia share their stories", attacks on churches, schools, and hospitals (see also 2023 National Library of Medicine (NLM) study "Attacks on Ukrainian healthcare facilities during the first year of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine"), and atrocities like the Bucha massacre in March 2022.]

[Excerpt]

"At the center of President Trump’s contentious plan to end the Russia-Ukraine war isn’t peace: it’s profit.

Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are negotiating with Russian officials to ensure U.S. businesses—and Trump’s friends—are in position to make a killing once the war ends, according to an exhaustive Wall Street Journal report published Friday...

Witkoff spoke to the paper about a future where Russia, the U.S., and Ukraine are all business partners. 

“If we do all that, and everybody’s prospering and they’re all a part of it, and there’s upside for everybody, that’s going to naturally be a bulwark against future conflicts there. Because everybody’s thriving,” Witkoff said...

Europe balked at President Trump’s 28-point peace plan—which Witkoff drafted based on a Russian plan— arguing it was overly generous to Russia. The deal had Ukraine concede territory and cut its military capacity, effectively neutering the nation’s sovereignty. The plan wasn’t popular in America either, as it received significant pushback from the GOP...

Though the Journal’s report details the many ways in which Americans and Russians could profit from an eventual peace deal, it’s unclear how Ukraine would benefit."

‘Traitor’: US representatives call for Trump envoy Witkoff to be fired after leaked Kremlin call; The Guardian, November 26, 2025

Joseph Gedeon, The Guardian ; ‘Traitor’: US representatives call for Trump envoy Witkoff to be fired after leaked Kremlin call: Republicans and Democrats warn Witkoff ‘cannot be trusted’ after reportedly advising officials on peace plan

"A handful of US representatives have reacted furiously to a leaked recording in which the special envoy to Ukraine reportedly coached Moscow on how to handle Donald Trump, but most have so far remained mute on the revelation that American officials were advising a US adversary.

Don Bacon, a Republican representative, called for Steve Witkoff’s immediate dismissal. “For those who oppose the Russian invasion and want to see Ukraine prevail as a sovereign & democratic country, it is clear that Witkoff fully favors the Russians,” the Nebraska lawmaker wrote on X.

“He cannot be trusted to lead these negotiations. Would a Russian paid agent do less than he? He should be fired.”

Brian Fitzpatrick, a Pennsylvania Republican wrote that the leak represented “a major problem” and “one of the many reasons why these ridiculous side shows and secret meetings need to stop”. He urged that the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, be allowed to “do his job in a fair and objective manner”.

Democratic representative Ted Lieu went further, calling Witkoff an “actual traitor,” and adding: “Steve Witkoff is supposed to work for the United States, not Russia.”

In a recording obtained by Bloomberg of a 14 October phone call between Witkoff and Yuri Ushakov, Vladimir Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Witkoff said peace would require Moscow gaining control of Donetsk and potentially additional Ukrainian territory."

Why Does Steve Witkoff Keep Taking Russia’s Side?: Trump’s envoy isn’t promoting peace. His interventions are helping Vladimir Putin.; The Atlantic, November 26, 2025

Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic ; Why Does Steve Witkoff Keep Taking Russia’s Side?: Trump’s envoy isn’t promoting peace. His interventions are helping Vladimir Putin.

"I’ve written this before, but it cannot be repeated often enough: This war will end only when Russia stops fighting. The Russians need to halt the invasion, recognize the sovereignty of Ukraine, and drop their imperial ambitions. Then Ukraine can discuss borders, prisoners, and the fate of thousands of kidnapped Ukrainian children.

But the only way to persuade Russia to stop fighting is to put pressure on Russia. Not Ukraine, Russia. The Ukrainians have already said they will stop fighting and agree to a cease-fire right now, on the current lines of conflict. Yet Witkoff is seeking to persuade Trump not to put pressure on Russia, and we don’t really know why.

Witkoff has no previous diplomatic experience, so perhaps he is naive. He spent many years in New York real estate, at a time when Russians were spending fortunes on property, so perhaps he feels gratitude. Maybe he’s helping Russia win because he has “the deepest respect for President Putin,” as he told Ushakov, and admires his brutality. Maybe he, or others in the White House entourage, have business interests tied to Russia—or hope to. In addition to discussing “peace,” Witkoff has also been, according to the document made public last week, talking with the Russians about American investments “in the areas of energy, natural resources, infrastructure, artificial intelligence, data centers, rare earth metal extraction projects in the Arctic.”

Whatever the reason, Witkoff is prolonging the conflict. He is not promoting peace. His call to Ushakov was not, as Trump said last night, a normal negotiating tactic. Every time he intervenes, advocating for Putin’s positions, he encourages the Russians to think they can get Trump on their side, pull America away from Europe, break up NATO, and win the war. In other words, every time he intervenes on behalf of the Russians, he contributes to the deaths of Ukrainians, the attacks on infrastructure, the ongoing tragedy that affects millions of people.

If this were a normal American administration, he would be fired immediately. But nothing about this negotiation, or this administration, is normal at all."

Report: US envoy coached Putin aide on how Russian leader should pitch Trump on Ukraine peace plan; THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, November 26, 2025

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ; Report: US envoy coached Putin aide on how Russian leader should pitch Trump on Ukraine peace plan

"President Donald Trump’s chief interlocutor with the Russian government last month advised a senior aide to Vladimir Putin on how the Russian leader should go about pitching the U.S. president on a peace plan aimed at bringing an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to a transcript of the call published by Bloomberg News on Tuesday.

Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, according to a transcript of the Oct. 14 call published by the news service, advised Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov that Putin should call Trump to congratulate him for the Gaza peace deal, say Russia had supported it and that he respects the president as a man of peace."