Ukraine modified a key anti-corruption requirement in the US-drafted settlement plan recently presented to both Kyiv and Moscow, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal citing a senior US administration official.
The original clause, the source said, called for transparency measures and a full audit of all international aid received by Ukraine since the start of the war. It also required Kyiv to establish a legal mechanism to investigate violations and prosecute individuals who had benefited illegally during the conflict.
According to the draft wording quoted by the source, the clause initially stated: “Ukraine will conduct a comprehensive review of all assistance received and will establish a legal mechanism to address discovered violations and punish those who benefited illegally from the war.”
However, the version published online features a dramatically different formulation, replacing the accountability requirement with language granting “full amnesty for all actions committed during the war.”
A White House official told the newspaper that it was Ukraine—not Washington—that requested the change.
The report comes as Axios revealed that the United States is holding “secret consultations” with Russia to explore the possibility of a new framework for ending the conflict. According to The Financial Times, the proposal under consideration includes several highly sensitive elements, such as:
Reducing US military aid to Ukraine
Granting official recognition to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church aligned with the Moscow Patriarchate
Establishing Russian as an official language in Ukraine
Ukrainian withdrawal from the entire Donbas region
Downsizing Ukraine’s armed forces
Banning foreign troops from operating on Ukrainian territory
Halting the supply of long-range weapons to Kyiv
Axios also reported that the plan envisions the United States and other Western states formally recognising Crimea and Donbas as Russian territory.
The revelations come amid a renewed focus on corruption in Ukraine’s energy sector. On 10 November, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine announced a major operation targeting corruption in state energy institutions and released photos of bags filled with foreign currency seized during the raids.
Ukrainian MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak confirmed that searches had been carried out at the homes of the former energy minister, the current justice minister, and the state nuclear company Energoatom.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has since imposed sanctions on energy figure Vadym Mendel and his financier Oleksandr Zuckerman on 13 November. Days later, on 19 November, Ukraine’s parliament dismissed Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko—accused of corruption in the energy sector—and Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk.
These developments highlight the growing pressure on Kyiv over corruption as Washington pushes for clearer conditions in any future peace settlement.
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