Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said US peace envoys asked whether Ukraine would be willing to give up the Donbas region in the nation’s east to Russia in exchange for NATO membership, signaling a potential shift in Washington’s negotiating tactics.
As the full-scale war between Ukraine and Russia heads toward the end of its fifth year in February with no end in sight, the administration of President Donald Trump is trying to make a breakthrough in the peace negotiations they’re moderating.
“It was the first time this had been raised,” Zelenskyy told reporters in his office in Kyiv late Friday of the plan involving the large Donestsk and Luhansk regions. “We are discussing with our partners a comprehensive security package that could be offered to us in the negotiations.”
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Zelenskyy said that the package floated by Washington includes specific security guarantees from NATO and the European Union; a strong Ukrainian army, meaning an adequate number of troops, weapons, and financial support for a specified period of time; and a Recovery Plan backed by funding with clearly identified sources.
“If the American side confirms precisely this to us, together with other NATO partners, then I will ask our Ukrainian society what it thinks: do we accept it or not?” Zelenskyy said. “I have no right to make that decision on my own.”
Earlier this week, US envoys Jared Kushner, Trump’s son in law, and Steve Witkoff met with their Ukrainian and Russian counterparts in Abu Dhabi for talks that yielded some progress, according to all sides. While Kyiv and Moscow agreed to a substantial exchange of prisoners of war, territorial disputes remain far from resolved.
Read more: Putin Tests Europe’s Unity With New Pressure to Talk Security
Russia also agreed to allow EU representatives to join the talks. The bloc is expected to decide on its envoys by the end of this month, Zelenskyy said.
Meanwhile, Kyiv faces what it sees as periodic pressure from Washington to accept unfavorable peace terms. The latest example is restrictions on the use of Starshield, a satellite-based communications system developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX for military purposes.
Zelenskyy said Starshield terminals are currently restricted in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, hampering Kyiv’s air defenses, which attempt to intercept Russian drones and missiles before they reach other parts of the country.
(Updates with additional Zelenskyy comments, background from sixth paragraph.)
