Ukraine President Zelensky rejects US Peace plan

Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky has strongly reaffirmed that Ukraine will not concede territory to Russia as negotiations over a US-proposed peace plan continue.

 

“We definitely do not want to give anything up. That is what we are fighting for,” Zelensky said, adding that under Ukrainian law, the Constitution, and international law, his country has no legal or moral right to do so.

 

Russia has consistently insisted that territorial concessions must be part of any settlement to end its invasion.

 

Speaking while en route to Brussels for meetings with NATO and European Union officials, Zelensky indicated that talks had made progress. He stated that peace proposals were being finalized and would be sent to the United States on Tuesday. “There is slight progress towards a possible end to the war… I think the plan will be ready tomorrow,” Zelensky said.

 

The Ukrainian leader noted that the initial 28-point plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, which had been criticized as favoring Russia, has since been slimmed down to a 20-point version. Zelensky confirmed that “The anti-Ukrainian points were removed,” but acknowledged that the US is still “looking for a compromise.”

Earlier on Monday, Trump accused Zelensky of not having read the latest version of the proposal, highlighting lingering tension over the plan’s details.

 

Zelensky met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and French President Emmanuel Macron in London on Monday to cover the “sensitive issues” of security guarantees for Ukraine and control of its eastern regions.

 

 

Ahead of the meeting, Zelensky stressed the urgency for both Europeans and Americans to show “unity” in resisting Russian aggression. Following the meeting, Chancellor Merz stressed, “We are still and remain strongly behind Ukraine… because we all know that the destiny of this country is the destiny of Europe.”

 

 

Kyiv is seeking a separate agreement on security guarantees from Western allies, especially the US. “There is one question I — and all Ukrainians — want to get an answer to: If Russia again starts a war, what will our partners do,” Zelensky said.

 

He added that discussions with Europe also involve Ukraine’s membership in the EU, which is considered part of security guarantees.

 

The ongoing peace negotiations come amid fears that US interest in Ukraine’s defense may be dwindling, following the publication of the Trump administration’s new “America First” national security strategy.

 

This strategy, which is deeply critical of Europe, notably dropped language describing Russia as a threat. Instead, the document casts Washington as the central broker in re-establishing stability in Europe and strategic stability with Russia.

This policy shift was welcomed by the Kremlin.

 

Speaking on Sunday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appeared to applaud the strategy and praised the American president, calling him “strong.”

 

Peskov expressed hope that the adjustments could be a “modest guarantee that it will be possible to continue working constructively together to find a peaceful settlement for Ukraine, at the very least.”

 

Trump himself criticized Zelensky after weekend talks between US and Ukrainian negotiators in Miami ended with unresolved questions over security guarantees and territorial issues. Trump suggested that while Moscow is “fine” with the peace plan, he was “not sure that Zelensky’s fine with it.”

On Monday, Zelensky confirmed that the US had yet to reach an agreement on the future of Ukraine’s Donbas, which includes the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

 

As diplomatic efforts continue, the conflict on the ground remains brutal. Russia launched one of its largest barrages of drones and missiles in months across Ukraine over the weekend, killing at least seven people.

 

Russia’s strikes targeted energy infrastructure in various regions, with consumers in Odesa, Chernihiv, Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Mykolaiv regions experiencing power outages. Power cut schedules were introduced across all regions, including Kyiv, where residents were without electricity for about 12 hours.

 

Meanwhile, investigations are underway in Ireland and France after two more incidents this week involving unidentified drones flying close to their coastlines. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called this string of unexplained sightings “hybrid warfare.”