Zelensky ready for ‘honest work’ with US to end Ukraine war

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is ready for “honest work” with the US after receiving a draft peace plan to end the war with Russia.

Several US media outlets report that under the plan, Kyiv would give up areas of the Donbas in eastern Ukraine that it still controls, cut the size of its army, and pledge never to join Nato.

It was unclear how involved Ukraine has been in drafting the plan, but White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the US had engaged “equally with both sides”.

In a separate statement, Zelensky’s office said that Ukraine had “agreed to work on the plan’s provisions in a way that would bring about a just end to the war”.

If confirmed, the demands in the plan, would appear to favour Moscow’s interests.

Zelensky said he expects to speak with US President Donald Trump in the coming days about the proposals, which also include plans for Ukraine to forego many of its weapons.

But in a press briefing at the White House, Leavitt rejected suggestions that the plan demanded major concessions from Ukraine, and said the US president “supports” it.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been working on a proposal quietly for about a month, and had engaged both sides “to understand what these countries would commit to in order to see a lasting and durable peace”, Leavitt said.

“It’s a good plan for both Russia and Ukraine,” she added, without providing further details. “We believe that it should be acceptable to both sides. And we’re working very hard to get it done.”

A unnamed senior US official told CBS News that the plan “was drawn up immediately following discussions with one of the most senior members of President Zelensky’s administration, Rustem Umerov, who agreed to the majority of the plan, after making several modifications, and presented it to President Zelensky”.

In a statement on X, Zelensky wrote, “The American side presented points of a plan to end the war—their vision. I outlined our key principles. We agreed that our teams will work on the points to ensure it’s all genuine.”

The statement came after a meeting in Kyiv on Thursday between Zelensky and senior US military figures, including US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, army chief of staff Gen Randy George and top US army commander in Europe Gen Chris Donahue.

Despite Kyiv’s tepid reaction to the draft, Zelensky said he “appreciated the efforts of President Trump and his team to return security to Europe” – perhaps a way to keep the US president onside despite his administration’s apparent soft approach to Russia.

In his nightly address on Thursday, Zelensky said Ukraine needs a “worthy peace,” and that the “dignity of the Ukrainian people” must be respected.

When asked if Europe was involved in the process of drafting the plan, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, said: “Not that I know of.”

“For any plan to work, it needs Ukrainians and Europeans on board,” she added.

Moscow downplayed the significance of the plan, which is rumoured to include 28 points.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that while there had been “contacts” with the US there was “no process that could be called ‘consultations'”.

Peskov warned that any peace deal would have to address the “root causes of the conflict” – a phrase Moscow has used as shorthand for a series of maximalist demands which, to Ukraine, are tantamount to surrender.

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “The future of Ukraine must be determined by Ukraine and we must never lose sight of that principle underpinning the just and lasting peace that we all want to see.”

Since starting his second term earlier this year, Trump has launched into various initiatives aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, including a bilateral summit with Putin in Alaska, several visits by his envoy Witkoff to Moscow, and rounds of talks with Zelensky and other Western leaders.

But as the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine nears, the two sides remain deeply at odds over how to end the conflict.

While Ukraine has become adept at targeting Russian military infrastructure and energy facilities with long-range drones, Moscow’s attacks on Ukrainian targets continue unabated.

Late on Thursday, a Russian attack on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia killed at least five people, according to the regional governor.

Earlier this week, at least 26 people were killed in a Russian missile and drone attack on blocks of flats in Ukraine’s western city of Ternopil. Another 17 people were still missing at the site on Thursday, Zelensky said as he offered his condolences.