Former Bulgarian Foreign Minister Warns Trump’s 28-Point Peace Plan Signals 'De Facto Capitulation' for Ukraine

Former Foreign Minister of Bulgaria, Nadezhda Neynsky, described the proposed 28-point peace arrangement as deeply unsettling, arguing that its content amounts to what she views as a practical capitulation by Ukraine. She said this also sheds light on the sharp tone adopted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in response to the plan.

The document, drafted with input from both Washington and Moscow, was presented in Kyiv and outlines a settlement heavily skewed in Russia’s favor, including territorial concessions and Ukraine’s withdrawal of ambitions to join NATO. Although the United States and Ukraine have since announced that an “updated and improved” peace framework is now on the table, Neynsky noted that the previous draft prepared under US President Donald Trump had already raised alarm in Kiev due to the advantages it offered Moscow. The new version appears to revisit some of those points, but the underlying concerns remain significant for Ukraine and its allies.

Neynsky argued that any approach to ending the conflict must stay rooted in international law and should clearly define what constitutes acceptable guarantees of peace and security for all involved – Russia, Ukraine, European partners and the United States. She stressed that this is precisely where views diverge. In her assessment, the initial 28-point proposal was so extreme that it served as a deliberate provocation to everyone at the negotiating table. Zelensky’s emotional response, she said, stems from the perception that Ukraine was being asked to accept terms it could only have agreed to at the very start of the invasion.

She added that Trump often negotiates using what she described as an anchoring tactic: one party puts forward a proposal so unreasonable that any subsequent retreat appears like a concession, even though the initiator ultimately secures the strategic advantage. According to her, the signals emerging now indicate the beginning of a re-negotiation phase in which compromises will be sought on all sides.

Neynsky also believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin is under greater pressure than in previous stages of the war as a result of more stringent sanctions. Despite the difficult circumstances, she argued that Zelensky still holds strong leverage, pointing to the consistent political and financial backing Ukraine receives from the European Union as a key factor supporting Kyiv’s demand for a fair and durable peace.