Zelensky Unveils 20-Point Peace Plan, Offers Potential Ukrainian Troop Withdrawal From East

Could Ukraine trade territory for peace? President Volodymyr Zelensky has detailed a new 20-point peace plan that offers the potential withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the east—a core demand from Moscow. The proposal could serve as a major framework for ending the war, but it contains sensitive concessions that could spark fierce domestic debate.

Nato-Style Guarantees and an 800,000-Strong Military

Describing the plan agreed with US negotiators in Florida over the weekend, Zelensky called it "the main framework for ending the war." It proposes robust security guarantees from the US, Nato, and Europeans, mirroring Nato membership with a coordinated military response if Russia were to invade again. Ukraine would also maintain a military strength of 800,000, Zelensky explained. Russia is expected to give its response after the Americans have spoken to them.

The Donbas Conundrum

The plan's most contentious element concerns the eastern Donbas region. Russia has long insisted that Ukraine pull its troops out of almost a quarter of the Donetsk region in exchange for a peace deal. While Zelensky said sensitive issues over territory would have to be resolved "at the leaders' level," he offered a potential alternative to a full withdrawal: a demilitarised zone or a "free economic zone."

He emphasized that such a zone would also need to be established around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. In return, Russian troops would be required to pull out of four other Ukrainian regions: Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv.