Zelenskyy Vows Not To Cede Territory To Russia As U.S. Peace Plan Sparks Backlash

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday affirmed that Ukraine will not cede territory to Russia, rejecting proposals that would require Kyiv to give up land as part of a brokered peace deal. Speaking after a meeting with the leaders of France, Germany and the U.K. in London, Zelenskyy said Ukraine has "no right to give anything away" — a position he framed as grounded in Ukrainian, international and moral law, according to The Washington Post.

The statement comes as the Trump administration advances a framework intended to halt more than three years of fighting that followed Russia's large-scale invasion in 2022. A leaked initial draft of that framework drew immediate skepticism after appearing to echo several key Russian demands, including that Ukraine cede the Donbas region and renounce future NATO membership.

European and Ukrainian leaders, along with bipartisan U.S. lawmakers, criticized the leaked draft, and talks have since stalled amid continued pressure from the Trump administration that Kyiv accept territorial concessions in eastern Ukraine. President Trump said the Kremlin was "fine" with the latest version of the proposal but suggested Zelenskyy "isn't ready," adding he was disappointed that Zelenskyy had not yet read the proposal.

Before traveling to London, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian representatives had held "substantive discussions" with U.S. peace envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law, describing the talks as "constructive, though not easy." On social media after the London meeting, Zelenskyy wrote:

"Today, we held a detailed discussion on our joint diplomatic work with the American side, aligned a shared position on the importance of security guarantees and reconstruction, and agreed on the next steps."

What's Next

Zelenskyy is scheduled to travel to Brussels to meet with leaders of NATO, the European Council and the European Union to press Kyiv's case for stronger security guarantees and reconstruction assistance. Kyiv has emphasized that any durable settlement must protect its territorial integrity, ensure credible security arrangements, and support postwar recovery.

Context: The debate over the peace framework highlights deep divisions among international partners over how to end the fighting while preserving Ukraine's sovereignty. The leaked draft and subsequent negotiations have intensified scrutiny of U.S. mediation efforts and raised questions about the influence of Russian demands in shaping proposed terms.