Until November 27: Will Trump have time to stop the war before Putin changes his deadlines?
24 November 2025 17:12
Time has become the main tool in this war – and the main threat to all sides. While the United States is trying to speed up the peace process, the Kremlin is building its own multi-year deadlines, and the Ukrainian state is carefully reading the signals between the lines. Why is Washington in a hurry, what does Moscow expect, and could the war be over before November 27?
The United States no longer demands that Ukraine sign a “peace agreement” by November 27. This was reported by The Economist. According to the newspaper, Washington has temporarily abandoned the previously announced deadline, as well as threats of a possible suspension of intelligence sharing and a reduction in military aid.
Negotiations between the teams of US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will continue in the coming days, including at the level of the leaders of the states.
Journalists emphasize that this is a sharp change in tone compared to the events in Kyiv just a few days ago, when the US Secretary of the Army presented the Ukrainian side with a preliminary version of the plan. The document has not been officially made public, but a number of politicians and media outlets have already called it a “surrender plan.” The Economist described the draft as “a Russian wish list mixed with Trump’s economic demands.”
Time is of the essence
Doctor of Philosophy, Professor and Vice-Rector of the European University Sergiy Yahodzinsky in an exclusive commentary
“I don’t think this is a fever or hysteria. On the contrary, Trump’s current reaction is quite predictable in the context of the steps he is taking to stop the war,” Yahodzinsky said.
The expert believes that Trump is acting quickly for a reason. After all, the US has taken many steps that have an expiration date.
“Trump is well aware of this: Putin is adapting to sanctions and is always looking for workarounds. China, India, North Korea – they are situationally lending a shoulder to Russia. Time is working against the United States,” says Serhiy Yahodzinsky.
That is why, according to the professor, Washington is trying to speed up the negotiation process before the Russian economy stabilizes again with the help of its partners.
Why does the Kremlin avoid commenting on the plan?
According to Yahodzinsky, it is also indicative that the Kremlin hardly comments on the proposed plan:
“Putin seems to agree to everything, even the changes proposed by Ukraine. This may mean that Kyiv has not yet crossed the boundaries agreed between the US and Russia at the previous stages of negotiations,” the expert notes.
The professor suggests that there are already several versions of the plan that have been discussed between Washington and Moscow, including the possibility of Ukraine’s rejection of some points. According to him, the biggest intrigue is the agreement between Trump and Putin.
“What exactly Trump promised Putin is hardly ever raised in the Ukrainian media. But it is extremely important. Because we see that Putin is hardly interfering in the negotiations,” Yahodzinsky explains.
It is obvious that some kind of powerful agreement exists between Trump and Putin. But it seems that the calculation was not at the expense of Ukraine, the professor notes. “And if Ukrainian interests are not surrendered, we don’t really care what they divided among themselves.
What are Russia’s deadlines?
While negotiations on a possible peaceful settlement continue in Washington, Russia is demonstrating that it has its own timetable for the war and is not going to adapt to the US proposals. This is evidenced by new data from Russian military sources.
The Kremlin Snuffbox telegram channel published information that Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov set a task to “completely seize the territory of the so-called “DPR” by January 1, 2027.” According to sources in the Russian army, the date was set “after much deliberation.” One of the interlocutors emphasized that the Russian Defense Ministry could not promise a faster pace due to a lack of confidence in its own capabilities.
Against this backdrop, philosopher Alexander Dugin unexpectedly stated that “Ukraine will be fully Russian in a maximum of two years.” After that, according to the channel, he received a sharp reaction from representatives of the Russian Defense Ministry:
“Why is a philosopher who has access to classified information making this public? Yes, we are planning to “liberate” the whole of Ukraine, but why shout about it? Negotiations are underway, and sometimes it’s worth keeping quiet. Secondly, we will not conquer Ukraine in two years,” the statement reads.
Doctor of Philosophy Serhiy Yahodzinsky notes that there are no signs in the public sphere that Vladimir Putin is ready to stop the war on the existing front line. At the same time, some details indicate:
“The Kremlin seems to allow for the possibility of a certain “line shift”. In particular, regarding the Zaporizhzhia NPP and the demilitarization of part of Donbas,” the expert summarizes.
By November 27, Washington is trying to fix the contours of the peace agreement, because time is against the United States: Putin is adapting to the sanctions, enlisting the support of his partners, and deliberately prolonging the war by setting his own deadlines until 2027. Against this backdrop, the main question remains whether Trump will have time to stop the war by November 27 before Putin changes the rules of the game again.
