This Compact was developed by civil society leaders as part of the Women Leaders Coalition for the Future of Ukraine Summit.
Amid ongoing negotiations and discussions surrounding a potential Ukraine-Russia peace deal—and in light of the notable absence of Ukrainian voices from key meetings between the U.S. and Russia—the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) has released a 10-Point Compact for Ukraine’s Just and Sustainable Peace. Developed by civil society leaders as part of the Women Leaders Coalition for the Future of Ukraine Summit, the Compact outlines ten critical actions the international community must take to ensure a lasting peace in Ukraine. These include upholding Ukraine’s sovereignty over occupied territories, ensuring Ukraine’s full participation in political negotiations, and protecting civilian populations. The Compact also highlights key implications for the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and provides actionable mechanisms for implementation.
The need for principled global action has never been more urgent, and the Compact can serve as a guiding framework for the international community. Earlier today, Russia launched a massive assault on Kyiv, killing at least 12 people and injuring 90 others—the deadliest attack on the Ukrainian capital since last summer. This follows a series of strikes carried out over the holy Christian holidays of Palm Sunday and Good Friday, despite Russia’s repeated promise of a ceasefire during recent U.S.-led negotiations. On Palm Sunday, a brutal Russian strike in Sumy killed 35 civilians and injured more than 100 others—underscoring Russia’s continued unprovoked aggression and its deliberate targeting of civilian populations. That attack occurred just two days after U.S. Envoy Steve Witkoff held a four-hour meeting with President Vladimir Putin, including a highly publicized handshake. Yet, rather than reassessing its approach, the U.S. doubled down, blocking a joint G7 statement condemning the Palm Sunday attack.
Furthermore, just this Wednesday—days before Russia’s deadly assault on Kyiv—President Trump and his top aides, including Vice President JD Vance, introduced a new proposal pressuring Ukraine to accept terms that would cede all currently occupied territory to Russia, offer no meaningful security guarantees, and explicitly bar Ukraine from ever joining NATO. The proposal reportedly includes formal U.S. recognition of Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. This proposal is far from an honest negotiation process and amounts to a full capitulation to Vladimir Putin’s demands. Today’s strike, alongside the recent attacks during Ukraine’s most sacred religious observances, underscores both Russia’s clear disinterest in genuine peace and the failure of current U.S. overtures to produce any tangible results.
With no formal peace process yet established, we hope this Compact can serve as a unifying platform for civil society and women leaders in Ukraine—amplifying their voices, priorities, and perspectives. Despite immense challenges, Ukrainian women have continued to demonstrate extraordinary resilience and leadership across all aspects of the war response: sustaining governance structures, supporting communities, and advocating on the international stage. Their inclusion in these preliminary discussions is vital and will be essential to the success of any future formal peace process.
The Compact was developed during a recent GIWPS convening of Ukrainian civil society leaders in Warsaw, where the discussions emphasized the vital role of women in peace negotiations and post-war recovery.
We recently distributed the Compact during The Power of Sisterhood—an event we co-hosted with the Embassy of Ukraine in the USA, Ukraine House, the Ukrainian National Women’s League of America (UNWLA), and the Ukrainian Women’s Fund. Held at Ukraine House in Washington, DC, the event honored Ukrainian women’s leadership in diplomacy and marked the 100th anniversary of the UNWLA—one of the oldest Ukrainian organizations in the U.S. dedicated to preserving Ukrainian heritage.
