All eyes on Russia as it eyes Ukraine peace plan with caution

All eyes are present connected Russia's effect to a fledgling bid program to extremity the warfare successful Ukraine aft Kyiv appeared consenting to determination guardant with a U.S.-backed framework.

U.S. peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to question to Moscow adjacent week to conscionable Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin adjutant Yuri Ushakov told reporters Wednesday that "the contented [of the U.S. plan] volition beryllium discussed," astatine the meeting, and claimed Russian officials had not discussed a U.S.-backed program erstwhile talks were held with U.S. officials successful Abu Dhabi connected Tuesday.

"We, the Russian side, person not yet discussed immoderate documents with anyone specifically ... We've agreed to a gathering with Mr. Witkoff. I anticipation helium won't beryllium alone. Other representatives of the U.S. squad moving connected the Ukrainian dossier volition beryllium there," helium said successful comments translated by NBC News and reported by authorities quality bureau TASS.

Ushakov said Russia had not yet officially received the U.S.-backed draught woody for Ukraine but had seen an unofficial version.

Regarding the program it had seen, Ushakov said the Kremlin viewed immoderate aspects of the program positively portion "several of its points necessitate superior analysis."

Meanwhile, Putin's Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov connected Wednesday warned against jumping to conclusions regarding an extremity to the war, which Russia launched erstwhile it invaded Ukraine successful Feb. 2022.

"Wait. It's excessively aboriginal to accidental that," Peskov told reporters, state quality bureau TASS reported, erstwhile asked whether this was the closest Russia and Ukraine had ever been to concluding a bid agreement. 

CNBC has contacted the Kremlin for further remark and is awaiting a response.

Multiple outlets reported Tuesday that a Ukrainian delegation that had held talks with U.S. officials successful Abu Dhabi connected Tuesday appeared to tentatively enactment the ground of a U.S.-backed bid program — though cardinal details remained unresolved.

Reports from ABC News and CBS News both cited an unnamed U.S. authoritative who said that the Ukrainians "have agreed" to the deal, portion noting that immoderate points inactive request to beryllium ironed out. It was not wide if the aforesaid U.S. authoritative was quoted successful some stories.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said aboriginal Tuesday that Kyiv was acceptable to beforehand the bid framework, Reuters reported, citing a transcript of a code the president gave to a conjugation of allied countries.

President Donald Trump said astatine the White House connected Tuesday, "I deliberation we're getting precise adjacent to a deal. We'll find retired ... I deliberation we're making progress."

In a Truth Social post later Tuesday afternoon, Trump said, "there are lone a fewer remaining points of disagreement."

Trump's station came respective days aft U.S. officials met with a Ukrainian delegation successful Geneva past play for talks that resulted successful important revisions to Washington's initially proffered 28-point bid plan.

That program — which was wide seen arsenic being highly favorable to Russia, the invading unit — "has been fine-tuned, with further input from some sides," Trump acknowledged successful Tuesday's post.

"Our delegations reached a communal knowing connected the halfway presumption of the statement discussed successful Geneva," Ukraine National Security Secretary Rustem Umerov said successful an X post.

It's acold from definite the Russia volition assent to the revised bid plan, which has reportedly been narrowed to 19 points.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said immoderate statement indispensable bespeak the understandings reached by Trump and Putin during their August summit successful Alaska.

On Tuesday, officials from Kyiv and Moscow reportedly met with Driscoll successful Abu Dhabi, superior of the United Arab Emirates.

The Kremlin was tight-lipped astir the discussions taking spot there, with Dmitry Peskov telling reporters Tuesday that "we inactive person thing to say" and that the Kremlin was "monitoring media reports."

"We recognize that negotiations betwixt the Americans and the Ukrainians are ongoing. We recognize that immoderate adjustments are being made to the substance that was published; we recognize that the substance that we unofficially received earlier has already undergone changes, but astatine immoderate point, the clip volition astir apt travel erstwhile we volition besides found contacts with the Americans and we volition officially person immoderate information," Peskov said. "For now, we person nary caller information."

The initial, 28-point plan, which Ukraine had not participated in, included arguable terms, specified arsenic Ukraine making territorial concessions by handing implicit the eastbound Donbas portion that is partially occupied by Russian forces.

The archetypal woody besides demanded that Ukraine trim its service by 50%, on with different proposals that crossed Ukraine's "red lines."

Trump had pushed Ukraine to judge that woody by the U.S. Thanksgiving Day vacation connected Nov. 27, prompting Zelenskyy to state connected Friday that Ukraine faced the hard prime betwixt "losing its dignity oregon losing a cardinal partner," referring to the U.S.

That deadline appears to person been scrapped. It was unclear however galore of the archetypal deal's points remained successful the latest mentation of a imaginable bid agreement.