WASHINGTON

US Vice President JD Vance on Friday defended the Trump administration’s emerging peace framework for ending the Russia-Ukraine war, arguing that critics misunderstand the proposal and realities on the ground.

"Any Ukraine-Russia peace plan has to: 1) Stop the killing while preserving Ukrainian sovereignty. 2) Be acceptable to both Russia and Ukraine. 3) Maximize the chances the war doesn't restart," Vance wrote on US social media company X.

Trump administration officials have floated a 28-point peace proposal to end the conflict -- a plan that would require Kyiv to relinquish control of Crimea and the eastern Donbas region, and to permanently forgo joining NATO.

Vance said the administration’s approach is rooted in pragmatic diplomacy rather than unrealistic expectations from hard-line critics.

"Every criticism of the peace framework the administration is working on either misunderstands the framework or misstates some critical reality on the ground.

"There is a fantasy that if we just give more money, more weapons, or more sanctions, victory is at hand," Vance said.

He added that peace “won’t be made by failed diplomats or politicians living in a fantasy land,” but by “smart people living in the real world.”

Earlier Friday, President Donald Trump said he believed next Thursday was an "appropriate" deadline for Ukraine to accept the plan.

"He'll have to like it, and if he doesn't like it, then you know, they should just keep fighting, I guess," Trump told reporters, referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who spoke with Vance about the plan on Friday.

Zelenskyy underlined that Kyiv is coordinating closely with its partners to ensure that its core positions are reflected in negotiations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the US plan “could be used as the basis” for a settlement to the Ukraine war and Moscow remains satisfied with progress on the battlefield but remains open to talks.