
WASHINGTON - Washington insisted Saturday that its Ukraine proposal is indeed official US policy,...

denying claims by a group of senators that Secretary of State Marco Rubio told them the document under discussion is just a Russian "wish list." The dispute over the 28-point plan -- which cedes Ukrainian territory long sought by Moscow -- threw an extraordinary element of confusion into efforts to negotiate an end to the war. US President Donald Trump has pushed the plan, pressuring the Ukrainians to accept it within days. Negotiators will meet in Switzerland on Sunday. However, after a storm of criticism that the proposal is almost entirely favorable to Moscow, several US senators spoke out, holding a press conference at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia, Canada on Saturday. The senators -- Republican Mike Rounds, independent Angus King, and Democrat Jeanne Shaheen -- said Rubio told them the current Ukraine proposal is not the official US position, but instead lays out a "Russian wish list." "What he (Rubio) told us was that this was not the American proposal. This was a proposal that was received by someone... representing Russia in this proposal. It was given to Mr Witkoff," Rounds said, referring to Trump's diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff. "It is not our recommendation. It is not our peace plan." (Bssnews)

