The Art of the Betrayal: Trump's Ukraine Peace Grift

Treason at its worst

American foreign policy is currently being auctioned off inside a waterfront estate in Miami Beach. Steve Witkoff, a New York real estate developer and golfing buddy of Donald Trump, hosted a private gathering late last year that treated the war in Ukraine not as a humanitarian crisis, but as a distressed asset liquidation.

Witkoff was joined by Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, and Kirill Dmitriev, the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund. Three men huddled over a laptop to draft terms that would end the war by selling out a U.S. ally to enrich a circle of Trump-linked investors.

Dmitriev acts as a direct representative of Vladimir Putin and manages the Russian Direct Investment Fund. The U.S. Treasury sanctioned this fund in 2022, labeling it a “slush fund” for the Russian president.

The Russian’s presence in Miami to negotiate the fate of a sovereign nation, bypassing the State Department entirely, signals a complete privatization of American diplomacy.

This meeting focused on unlocking Russia’s $2 trillion economy for the benefit of specific American businesses, with Trump’s inner circle positioned at the front of the line. Financial returns have replaced national security as the primary objective.

The 28-Point Surrender

Shadow negotiations in Miami produced a document known as the 28-point peace plan. Western intelligence officials were so alarmed by its contents that they circulated a copy in a manila envelope to European leaders, sparking panic across the continent.

The plan reads less like a treaty and more like a surrender agreement drafted by Moscow. It requires Ukraine to cede approximately 20% of its territory to Russia, including the industrial Donbas region, and to permanently cap its military at 600,000 personnel.

This proposal demands that Ukraine amend its constitution to renounce any future NATO membership, a move that would leave the country permanently vulnerable to Russian aggression.

The plan also calls for the immediate lifting of all Western sanctions on Russia. Trump’s team frames this as a necessary step for peace, but the terms suggest a different motivation.

Lifting sanctions acts as the key that unlocks the business deals discussed in Miami. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk summarized the situation accurately when he stated, “We know this is not about peace. It’s about business.”

Coaching the Enemy

Steve Witkoff’s role extends far beyond hosting private meetings. Evidence suggests he has actively coached Russian officials on how to manipulate the U.S. president.

A leaked recording of a phone call from October reveals Witkoff advising Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s top foreign policy aide, on how to handle Trump.

This call reveals an American envoy coordinating strategy with a foreign adversary against the interests of his own government’s official policy at the time.

Witkoff was heard admitting that a deal would require Russia to gain control of Donetsk and potentially involve a land swap.

He effectively helped the Kremlin tailor its messaging to appeal to Trump’s vanity, ensuring that the Russian perspective would dominate the negotiations.

Lawmakers have called this conduct treacherous, as it undermines the United States to benefit a hostile power.

The Gas Grift

Financial incentives for this betrayal are specific and massive. Gentry Beach, a close friend of Donald Trump Jr. and a major campaign donor, is positioning himself to profit directly from the lifting of sanctions.

Beach is in talks to acquire a stake in the Arctic LNG 2 project, a massive natural gas facility led by Novatek, Russia’s second-largest natural gas producer.

Sanctions currently block this project because it generates revenue for the Russian war machine. Beach’s investment is contingent on the Trump administration removing these legal barriers or granting him a special waiver.

The conflict of interest is glaring. A close associate of the president’s family stands to make a fortune if U.S. foreign policy flips to favor Russia.

Beach has framed this as “advancing American energy leadership,” but it appears to be a way to monetize a relationship with the White House at the expense of Ukrainian sovereignty.

The Pipeline Heist

Stephen P. Lynch, another Trump donor, is circling the carcass of the war. Lynch, a Miami-based investor who built a career buying distressed assets in Russia, is seeking a U.S. government license to bid on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

This infrastructure project, valued at $11 billion, lies dormant on the Baltic seabed after being damaged by sabotage and blocked by sanctions.

Lynch believes he can acquire the pipeline for “pennies on the dollar” during bankruptcy proceedings. His pitch to the Treasury Department is that American ownership of the pipeline would serve U.S. strategic interests.

However, the move would grant a private donor leverage over Europe’s energy supply while rehabilitating a key Russian asset.

Lynch paid a lobbyist with ties to the Trump transition team $600,000 to push his case, demonstrating the pay-to-play nature of this administration’s foreign policy.

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The Saudi Channel

Jared Kushner serves as the linchpin connecting these deals. His private equity firm, Affinity Partners, received a $2 billion investment from the Saudi Public Investment Fund shortly after he left the White House in 2021.

This investment generates roughly $25 million in guaranteed annual fees for Kushner, despite his lack of track record in private equity.

Kushner’s involvement in the Russia talks raises serious questions about who he is actually serving. Saudi Arabia and Russia coordinate closely on energy markets, and Dmitriev’s presence in Miami highlights the overlap between these authoritarian regimes and Trump’s orbit.

Kushner is effectively operating as a shadow diplomat funded by foreign sovereigns.

His firm’s dependence on Saudi money creates a permanent conflict of interest that compromises his ability to act in the American interest.

The Mars Distraction

The deal even includes a bizarre sweetener designed to appeal to Elon Musk, another key Trump ally.

Dmitriev proposed a joint U.S.-Russian mission to Mars during the Miami talks. He suggested that Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, could partner with Musk’s SpaceX for the venture.

This proposal serves as a distraction from the brutal realities of the peace plan. It offers Musk access to Russian titanium and rocketry expertise while giving Putin a propaganda victory.

Dmitriev has publicly courted Musk, asking if 2029 should be the year of the joint mission.

This inclusion demonstrates how the “peace” plan is being tailored to offer financial and reputational rewards to every member of the Trump coalition, turning national policy into a grab bag for billionaires.

The Resistance Rises

Pushback against this brazen scheme has been swift and fierce, offering a glimmer of hope that the deal may not be a fait accompli.

Domestic opposition is growing within Congress, where lawmakers are openly questioning the legality of Witkoff’s shadow diplomacy.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) has called for investigations into the conflicts of interest, while even some Republicans are breaking ranks.

Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) publicly stated that Witkoff “cannot be trusted” and questioned if a “Russian paid agent” would do anything differently, while Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) explicitly labeled the behavior “traitorous.”

European allies have also refused to roll over. The “manila envelope” leak galvanized leaders who are now actively drafting counter-proposals that strip out the most pro-Russian concessions.

Crucially, the European Union has blocked the Trump team’s attempt to seize frozen Russian central bank assets to fund their specific version of reconstruction.

By refusing to release these funds - which are mostly held in Belgium - Europe retains a massive point of leverage that Trump cannot simply wish away.

Ukrainian civil society remains the most formidable obstacle. Leaders like Nobel Peace Prize winner Oleksandra Matviichuk have mobilized to reject any deal that includes amnesty for Russian war crimes.

The Ukrainian public understands that a “peace” bought by selling off their land and justice is no peace at all.

This unified front of domestic investigators, European allies, and Ukrainian citizens suggests that while Trump’s envoys can draft capitulation terms in a Miami mansion, implementing them against the will of the free world will be a much harder battle.

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