Kyiv, December 13 : The United States has proposed establishing a “free economic zone” in Ukraine-controlled areas of the eastern Donbas as part of a compromise framework for ending the war with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday, underscoring deep divisions over territorial concessions.
Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv, Zelensky said U.S. officials had floated the idea as they push for progress in negotiations, which hinge on Russia’s demand that Ukraine cede the Donbas region. Under the proposal, Ukrainian forces would withdraw from parts of Donetsk while Russian troops would refrain from entering those areas. Moscow, he said, was referring to the plan as creating a “demilitarized zone.”
“They do not know who will govern this territory,” Zelensky said, adding that no agreement had been reached on land issues and that Ukrainians must approve any territorial concessions via referendum.
Ukraine has presented Washington with a revised 20-point peace framework, part of a broader attempt to rebalance an earlier 28-point U.S.-backed plan that Kyiv viewed as overly accommodating to Moscow. Zelensky said the talks also included discussions on Russian withdrawal from limited areas of the Kharkiv, Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk regions, while existing front lines in the partially occupied southern regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson would remain frozen.
As part of the negotiations, Zelensky said the U.S. had proposed potential joint governance of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s largest atomic facility. Russia insists the plant should remain under its control.
Mounting Pressure for a Deal
Kyiv faces growing pressure from Washington to make headway in securing a ceasefire as Russia steps up battlefield advances and renews large-scale strikes on Ukraine’s power grid. Reports that U.S. President Donald Trump had set a Christmas deadline for Kyiv to accept a deal were inaccurate, Zelensky said, though he acknowledged Washington wants a clearer sense of Ukraine’s position by then.
“I think they really wanted, or perhaps still want, to have a complete understanding of where we stand with this agreement by Christmas,” Zelensky said.
The overall peace package will include separate agreements on security guarantees, intended to prevent Russia from launching future attacks, and on reconstruction of war-damaged cities. Ukraine insists any security assurances must be ratified in parliament, noting that previous guarantees failed to protect it from invasion.
Zelensky said he held in-depth talks this week with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and White House special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Post-War Military Plans
Ukraine aims to retain a large standing army after the war. Zelensky said the latest draft proposal envisions a post-war force of 800,000 troops, an increase from earlier versions. Moscow has not publicly commented on the U.S.-Ukraine discussions.
