Zelensky Signals He's Open To Negotiating A Peace Deal

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is subtly shifting his rhetoric about ending the war with Russia, suggesting that Ukraine is open to stopping the fight to regain Russian-occupied territory in exchange for membership in NATO.

- Laurence Norman & Ian Lovett

In a series of interviews and public statements over the past week, Zelensky has sought to show that he is prepared to negotiate an end to the conflict—something that President-elect Donald Trump repeatedly called for on the campaign trail.

For most of the war, Zelensky had insisted that his country would keep fighting until it had reclaimed the roughly 20% of the country now under Moscow's control.

Now, Zelensky is suggesting that he could accept a cease-fire that effectively would leave occupied territory in Moscow's hands if the rest of Ukraine were given protection by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Two significant hurdles stand in the way of this idea, however: Ukraine's chances of joining the military alliance in the near term remain slim, and there is little indication that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to negotiate.

In recent months, Russian forces have advanced more quickly in eastern Ukraine than at any point since the early days of the war. Moscow has also moved its economy onto war footing and recently approved the largest defense budget in Russia's history, giving Putin confidence that he can continue to grab more Ukrainian territory by force.

In a news conference on Sunday, Zelensky said Ukraine would only be willing to enter such negotiations from a position of strength, which would require further steps toward NATO and new provisions of Western long-distance and other weapons.

“If we'll have (a) frozen conflict without any strong position for Ukraine, so Putin will come in two, three or five years,” Zelensky said.

“He will come back and destroy us totally. Or try to destroy us.”