US Floats Ukraine Ceding Donbas to Russia in Exchange for NATO Membership, Zelenskyy Says

The update

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said US negotiators floated Ukraine withdrawing from the eastern Donbas in exchange for NATO membership. "The Americans raised a question: ‘What if Ukraine joins NATO? Would Ukraine withdraw from Donbas?’ This was the first time this had been raised," he told reporters on Friday. He said a proposal with security guarantees, no limits on Ukraine’s military and rebuilding funds would be put to Ukrainians in a referendum.

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Why it matters

Kyiv has long sought NATO membership to deter a future invasion, while Moscow has said a NATO member on its border is unacceptable and has demanded territory and Ukrainian neutrality. US officials had previously said membership was off the table, so Zelenskyy said the idea suggested NATO is "back on the agenda." Russia occupies about a fifth of Ukraine, including most of the Donbas, so ceding the areas Kyiv still holds there would be symbolically major.

What to watch

Russia’s response, and whether Washington makes a formal proposal. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, then Zelenskyy in Dublin this week. Kremlin officials said Russia’s territorial demands had not softened, and Russia’s foreign ministry said the idea was, as far as it was aware, not discussed in Moscow.

Sources

• euronews.com — confirms the proposal, the referendum condition and Russia’s foreign ministry response
• bbc.co.uk — confirms the proposal, referendum conditions and Russia’s hold on most of the Donbas

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