United States negotiators floated the possibility of Ukraine withdrawing from its eastern Donbas region in exchange for joining NATO during peace talks in Abu Dhabi, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
The diplomatic maneuvering unfolded as American and European officials navigated an increasingly fraught landscape of peace proposals, regional security demands, and territorial disputes. The talks, which concluded on Wednesday in the United Arab Emirates, involved two days of discussions mediated by U.S. envoys, though no major breakthrough was reached on the battlefield or the negotiating table.
Territorial Concessions and Alliance Membership
Zelenskyy told journalists that U.S. officials specifically asked whether Ukraine would withdraw from Donbas if it were granted membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. While the Kremlin has long maintained that Ukrainian alliance membership is a red line—citing the issue as a primary justification for the 2022 invasion—Zelenskyy said that linking the two questions marked a new approach in American diplomacy.
According to Zelenskyy, when he asked whether American soldiers would be deployed on Ukrainian soil under such security guarantees, the U.S. side answered in the negative, describing the proposed arrangement as bilateral security guarantees similar to those Israel has.
The Donbas region comprises the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, of which Russian forces currently occupy roughly a fifth. Moscow has insisted that it will not agree to a ceasefire until a final peace deal is in place that would include Ukraine ceding control of those parts of the Donbas that Russian troops have not captured, alongside the Crimean peninsula Moscow annexed illegally in 2014.
Marco Rubio reportedly warned in private discussions that Russia’s capture of the entire Donbas would not satisfy the Kremlin’s territorial ambitions, while also expressing uncertainty regarding a negotiated end to the war or near-term NATO membership for Kyiv.
Zelenskyy reiterated that Kyiv is not prepared to unilaterally yield its land to terrorists, emphasizing that any comprehensive settlement involving territorial questions would require public validation.
“If the American side confirms precisely this to us, together with other NATO partners, then I will ask our Ukrainian society what it thinks: do we accept it or not?” Zelenskyy stated, adding that he lacks the authority to make such a decision independently and that any eventual agreement would proceed without recognizing occupied territories as Russian.
Zelenskyy Seeks Security Guarantees from NATO and the EU
Alongside territorial discussions, Ukrainian officials are negotiating a comprehensive security package with international partners. Zelenskyy outlined that this framework must include specific guarantees from NATO and the European Union, support for a well-funded and well-equipped army, and a recovery initiative backed by identifiable funding sources.
Zelenskyy said that he had requested security guarantees modeled on Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty as an absolute minimum, while noting that Washington had indicated the terms could resemble Articles 4 and 5.
Kushner urged “confidentiality” in a sensitive process. He said that “maximalist” proposals had been reported from the negotiations, along with “strong political rhetoric.“In what read like a reproach to Kyiv, Kushner referred to”private discussions” aimed at exploring new ideas about ending what he called a “horrible war.” He said the hope was that those ideas might lead to new proposals or breakthroughs.
Additional friction arose over accusations that U.S. officials limited Ukraine’s Starlink internet service, which it uses to co-ordinate defensive operations.
Negotiators Secure Commitment for Major Prisoner Exchange
Despite the lack of an overarching peace agreement, negotiators secured a commitment for a major prisoner exchange involving more than 1,000 people, with final numbers still under discussion.
Zelenskyy also dismissed Putin’s suggestion for a local humanitarian ceasefire in Kostiantynivka, a hotly contested city in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, saying it reflected Moscow’s inability to take the city by force.
