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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that the United States is pushing for Ukraine to retreat its forces from the Donetsk portion to found a “free economical zone” successful the Kyiv-held parts of eastbound Ukraine that Moscow wants to control.
Zelenskyy confirmed connected Thursday that his state had presented the US with a 20-point acceptable of counter-proposals for bid amid discussions connected information guarantees with apical US officials, making it wide that any territorial concessions would person to beryllium enactment to a referendum successful Ukraine.
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“They spot it arsenic Ukrainian troops withdrawing from the Donetsk region, and the compromise is supposedly that Russian troops volition not participate this portion of … region. They bash not cognize who volition govern this territory,” said the Ukrainian president.
He said that Russia had referred to the projected buffer country arsenic a “demilitarised zone” and that the US squad was describing it arsenic an “economic escaped zone”.
“I judge that the radical of Ukraine volition reply this question. Whether done elections oregon a referendum, determination indispensable beryllium a presumption from the radical of Ukraine,” helium said.
Zelenskyy is nether mounting US unit to unafraid a woody with Russia, with reports that US President Donald Trump wants an statement by Christmas. The wide bid program includes the 20-point model and abstracted documents connected information guarantees and connected rebuilding Ukraine.
The afloat details of the framework, which revises a US draft seen arsenic heavy weighted successful Russia’s favour, person not been released. Zelenskyy said the main issues of contention were power of the Donetsk portion successful the Donbas, and aboriginal governance of the Zaporizhzhia atomic powerfulness plant, which is presently nether Russian control.
Zelenskyy pushed backmost against the thought of a unilateral withdrawal of troops from the Donetsk, wherever Ukraine controls one-fifth of the territory. “Why doesn’t the different broadside of the warfare propulsion backmost the aforesaid region successful the different direction?” helium said, adding determination were “a large galore questions” inactive unresolved.
After talks connected Thursday with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff, the Ukrainian president said that information guarantees were “among the astir captious elements for each consequent steps.
The papers connected information guarantees would, helium said, person to supply “concrete answers” connected actions that would beryllium taken if “Russia decides to motorboat its aggression again”.
Today, we person had a constructive and in-depth treatment with the American squad connected 1 of the 3 documents we are presently moving connected – the 1 connected information guarantees. The U.S. was represented by Secretary Marco Rubio @SecRubio, Secretary Pete Hegseth @SecWar, @SteveWitkoff,… pic.twitter.com/gztUJHBOqn
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 11, 2025
‘Conflict is astatine our door’
On Thursday, NATO main Mark Rutte warned that Russia could beryllium acceptable to usage subject unit against the confederation wrong 5 years, urging members to “rapidly summation defence spending and production”.
“Conflict is astatine our door,” helium said successful a code successful Berlin. “We are Russia’s adjacent target. I fearfulness that excessively galore are softly complacent. Too galore don’t consciousness the urgency. And excessively galore judge that clip is connected our side. It is not. The clip for enactment is now.”
In different developments, Ukraine’s allies successful the alleged Coalition of the Willing discussed advancement connected mobilising frozen Russian sovereign assets during a virtual gathering connected Thursday, according to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office.
The European Commission is pushing to pat immoderate 200 cardinal euros ($232bn) of Russian cardinal slope assets immobilised successful the bloc aft the 2022 penetration of Ukraine to supply Kyiv with much-needed funding.
The sanctions freezing the Russian funds presently necessitate unanimous renewal doubly a year, leaving them susceptible to a veto from Hungary, the EU state closest to Russia.
But a bulk of ambassadors from the European Union’s 27 nations agreed connected Thursday connected a mode of keeping Russian funds frozen arsenic agelong arsenic required without the request for renewal each six months.
The idea, which inactive needs ceremonial support by the concern ministers gathering connected Friday, is not a done deal. Belgium, which, arsenic the location of Euroclear – the organisation holding astir of the funds, fears ineligible oregon fiscal retribution from Moscow.
Trump has mostly sought to sideline European nations from the bid process, preferring to woody straight with Moscow and Kyiv successful shuttle diplomacy led by peculiar envoy Witkoff and, lately, his son-in-law Jared Kushner.
On Thursday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who met Rutte successful Berlin, said further talks with the Americans were planned this weekend, and an planetary gathering connected Ukraine could hap astatine the commencement of adjacent week.
Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Audrey MacAlpine said Merz and Rutte “agreed that Ukraine was person to a ceasefire than has ever been”.
“They besides agreed that immoderate territorial concessions to beryllium made by Ukraine indispensable beryllium approved by Kyiv, and that successful immoderate bid negotiations moving forward, that European leaders indispensable beryllium involved,” she said.
The White House said Trump would nonstop a typical to talks successful Europe this play if determination was a existent accidental of signing a bid agreement.
Press caput Karoline Leavitt said the US president was “extremely frustrated with some sides” and “sick of meetings conscionable for the involvement of meeting”.
Russia claims to clasp ‘strategic initiative’
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who wants to represent himself arsenic negotiating from a presumption of strength, claimed connected Thursday successful a telephone with subject leaders that Russian equipped forces were “fully holding the strategical initiative” connected the battlefield.
In 2022, Russia claimed to formally annex the Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk and Zaporizhzhia regions, contempt not having afloat power implicit them. Putin has said that Moscow is acceptable to combat connected to prehend the onshore it claims if Kyiv does not springiness it up.
Lieutenant General Sergei Medvedev told Putin connected Thursday that troops had taken the metropolis of Siversk successful the Donetsk region, wherever warring has been fierce successful caller months.
The assertion was denied by the Ukrainian military’s Operation Task Force East unit, which said Russia was “trying to infiltrate Siversk successful tiny groups, taking vantage of unfavourable upwind conditions, but astir of these units are being destroyed connected the approaches”.
The task unit besides said Ukrainian forces were holding the bluish districts of Pokrovsk, a cardinal erstwhile logistics hub successful Donetsk that Russian commanders said came nether Moscow’s power past month.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian long-range drones deed a Russian lipid rig successful the Caspian Sea belonging to Russian lipid institution Lukoil, according to a study by The Associated Press, citing an anonymous authoritative successful the Security Service of Ukraine.
The rig reportedly took 4 hits, halting the extraction of lipid and state from much than 20 wells, according to the official. Russian officials and Lukoil made nary contiguous comment.
Ukraine besides launched 1 of its biggest drone attacks of the warfare overnight, halting flights successful and retired of each 4 Moscow airports for 7 hours.
Zelenskyy told the Coalition of the Willing gathering that a ceasefire was needed for elections to beryllium held successful Ukraine. The leader, whose word expired past year, is facing renewed unit from Trump to clasp a vote.
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