The United States wanted the resolution replaced with a toned-down version that felt overly sympathetic to Russia, an official said.
By Siobhán O’Grady and Michael Birnbaum
February 22, 2025
The Washington Post
KYIV — The Trump administration has asked Ukraine to withdraw an annual resolution condemning Russia’s war, and wants to replace it with a toned-down U.S. statement that was perceived as being close to pro-Russian in Kyiv, according to an official and three European diplomats familiar with the plan, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive political situation between nations that have typically acted as partners.
The suggestion stunned Kyiv, which refused to withdraw its resolution, which is set to be released on the three-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale anniversary on Monday. Ukrainians were informed of the new proposal on Friday.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio released a statement Friday saying that Washington “has proposed a simple, historic resolution in the United Nations that we urge all member states to support in order to chart a path to peace.” “Through support of this resolution, we affirm that this conflict is awful, that the UN can help end it, and that peace is possible. We strongly believe that this is the moment to commit to ending the war,” the statement said.
That resolution was seen in Kyiv as an attempt to limit any expression of Russian responsibility for the invasion, especially as the request came after U.S. President Donald Trump falsely accused Ukraine of starting the war.
First, the official said, Washington reviewed the Ukrainian proposed resolution and “demanded to make some changes to make it weaker,” including “pro-Russian” language in the document. Then Washington proposed a new resolution and demanded Kyiv withdraw its version, which had already been agreed upon with other partner nations that planned to sign it.
The new proposal “shocked” the Ukrainians, the official said, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry not to withdraw its existing resolution. “Their proposition is very short and totally new language,” the official said. “Many representatives of other nations say that this looks more like a call for appeasement with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin rather than a call for peace.”
The Trump administration’s request to Kyiv suggested that they are trying to “bypass all possible procedures in the U.N.” by requesting Ukraine withdraw its text voluntarily to pave the way for other nations to sign onto the milder U.S. text. “We have a lot of signs of possible bad things but it is shocking that they’re making pressure on [Ukraine] but not on Russians,” the official said. “It’s self-explanatory” what is happening, a senior European diplomat said.
Michael Birnbaum is a White House reporter for The Washington Post, covering the Trump presidency. He previously covered national security and diplomacy from Washington and served in Europe for more than a decade as the The Post’s bureau chief in Brussels, Moscow and Berlin. He has reported for The Post from more than 60 countries, covering the conflict in Ukraine, the Egyptian revolution, the fall of Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi and the Arab Spring elsewhere in the Middle East. Birnbaum has a degree in German history from Yale University. He grew up in Chicago and joined The Washington Post in 2008. Education: Yale University, BA in History; Deep Springs College. Member of the “Pegasus Project” team that won a George Polk Award, 2021. Languages spoken in addition to English: French, German, some Russian, some Latvian. Education: Georgetown University, BA in English; Harvard University, master’s in public policy.
Siobhán O’Grady is The Washington Post’s chief Ukraine correspondent. She previously served as Cairo bureau chief, covering North Africa and Yemen. Before that, she reported on foreign affairs for The Post, including from Afghanistan, Lebanon and Cameroon. She also freelanced across sub-Saharan Africa and worked as a staff writer at Foreign Policy magazine.