Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country has to confront the possibility of losing its dignity, or risking the loss of a key partner, after being given a week by the US to accept the framework of an American-brokered peace deal with Russia.
Washington warned on Friday that military and intelligence support could be curtailed if Kyiv resisted, news outlets reported.
Tension is growing in Kyiv after the US proposed in a draft that Ukraine cede territory to Moscow and limit the size of its military.
“This is one of the most difficult moments in our history,” Mr Zelenskyy said in a video address to the nation. “Currently, the pressure on Ukraine is one of the hardest. Ukraine may now face a very difficult choice, either losing its dignity or the risk of losing a key partner.”
He said Ukraine would “work calmly with America and all partners”, as he pledged to work constructively.
Reuters, quoting sources, said US President Donald Trump's administration wants Ukraine to sign on to the basic terms by next Thursday.
“They want to stop the war and want Ukraine to pay the price,” one of the sources told Reuters.
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To mark the third year of the Ukraine-Russia war, The National looks back at some of the striking images captured during the conflict. Getty Images -
Ukrainians working at the site of a rocket strike on the 'Okhmadyt' children's hospital in Kyiv in 2024. EPA -
A woman walks past a memorial wall dedicated to fallen defenders of Ukraine in downtown Kyiv in 2024. EPA -
A damaged town sign in Orikhiv, near the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, in 2024. EPA -
Gravediggers prepare the burial site for victims of a Russian missile strike in Hroza in 2023. Getty Images -
Widow Lubov Doroshenko, 67, returns to her destroyed home in 2023 in Bohorodychne. Getty Images -
A Ukrainian serviceman of the 24 Separate Mechanized Brigade fires a mortar towards Russian positions, at an undisclosed location in the Donetsk region in 2023. EPA -
Emergency workers search the remains of a residential building that was struck by a Russian missile in Dnipro in 2023. Getty Images -
Ukrainian national flags waving over the graves of fallen Ukrainian soldiers in a military cemetery in Kharkiv in 2023. EPA -
A woman walks by destroyed buildings 20 miles west from the front lines of fighting in the Donetsk Region in 2023. Getty Images -
A view taken through the broken glass of a window overlooking the site of a damaged residential building in Dnipro in 2023. EPA -
Numbers mark the graves of unidentified people killed during fighting at the cemetery in Mariupol in 2022. EPA -
Ukrainian servicemen shoot from a captured Russian 152, 4mm howitzer Msta-B on a front line near Kupyansk city in 2022. EPA -
A prothesis is adjusted on an Azov Regiment serviceman at a rehabilitation centre in Kyiv in 2022. EPA -
Cars drive past the shell of a rocket in Shevchenkove, Kharkiv region, in 2022. EPA -
A Ukrainian serviceman rests while travelling with a team of humanitarian volunteers in the Kherson area in 2022. EPA -
A destroyed bridge in Kupiansk in 2022. Getty Images -
A girl arrives at an evacuation point for people fleeing Mariupol, Melitopol and the surrounding towns under Russian control in 2022. Getty Images -
The mother of Ukrainian serviceman Andrii Verkhoglyad holds her son's portrait during his funeral ceremony at St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery in Kyiv in 2022. EPA -
Self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic militia monitors a section of the road near Avdiivka, Donetsk region, in 2022. EPA -
Firefighters work to extinguish a fire at a warehouse after it was hit by Russian shelling in Kharkiv in 2022. Getty Images -
A Ukrainian soldier waves the Ukrainian national flag while standing on top of an armoured personnel carrier in Hostomel in 2022. Getty Images -
A man pushes his bike through debris and destroyed Russian military vehicles in Bucha in 2022. Getty Images -
Residents of Irpin flee heavy fighting in 2022. Getty Images -
A child on a swing outside a residential building damaged by a missile in Kyiv in 2022. Getty Images
The Washington Post quoted officials familiar with the matter as saying that the US is sending “signals” that everything could be off the table if Kyiv does not quickly sign a proposal.
Earlier on Friday Mr Zelenskyy said in a post on social media that he had discussed the plan in a call with French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. He said previously that he was expecting to speak with Mr Trump and his team in the coming days.
“We are working on the document prepared by the American side. This must be a plan that ensures a real and dignified peace,” he wrote on X. “We are co-ordinating closely to make sure that the principled stances are taken into account. We co-ordinated the next steps and agreed that our teams will work together at the corresponding levels.”
Mr Starmer said he and the German and French leaders emphasised during the call that “Ukraine must determine its future under its sovereignty”.
Trump's 28-point Ukraine plan
Under the peace plan, Ukraine would reportedly be required to give up the eastern Donbas region, which comprises the Luhansk and Donetsk areas. Kyiv would also need to limit its army to 600,000 personnel.
The proposal would also prevent the future expansion of Nato. That would mark a significant victory for Moscow, which views the alliance as a potential threat.
European fighter jets would be based in Poland to help protect Ukrainian territory. But no Nato troops would be stationed in Ukraine and Kyiv would not be permitted to join the military alliance, under the plan.
In addition, $100 billion in frozen Russian assets would be used to rebuild Ukraine. There would also be a path to reintegrate Russia into the global economy, including the lifting of sanctions. The country would also return to what was formerly known as the Group of Eight (G8), which includes some of the world's largest economies.
Although Mr Zelenskyy indicated that he was prepared to give the US peace plan careful consideration, Ukraine said firmly at the UN that there were lines it would not cross.
“Our red lines are clear and unwavering,” Ukraine's deputy ambassador Khrystyna Hayovyshyn told the UN Security Council on Thursday. “Our land is not for sale. Ukraine will never accept any limits on its right to self-defence or on the size and capabilities of our armed forces.”
The latest attempt by the US administration to revive negotiations is modelled on the Gaza ceasefire. The Ukraine war plan outlines known Kremlin demands for concessions that Kyiv has repeatedly said are unacceptable and that have so far hindered all efforts to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire.
The Institute for the Study of War said that “all available reporting” on the peace plan indicated that the plan amounts to Ukraine’s “full capitulation to Russia’s original war demands”.
“There are no provisions in the reported peace plan in which Russia makes any concessions,” the think tank said in a post on social media.
Mr Trump’s national security team has engaged with Russian and Ukrainian officials and the US President supports the plan, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Thursday.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been “quietly” working on the plan with Russia and Ukraine for around a month, Ms Leavitt added.
News of the draft proposal comes after European military leaders were thrown into a panic over the secret peace plan. A leading British military figure told The National that the proposal’s impact on European security “would be a disaster”.
