Ukraine: Zelenskyy warns of 'breaking point' as US pushes peace deal favouring Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that his country’s alliance with the United States could be reaching breaking point after the White House put forward a 28-point peace plan to end the war against Russia.

The proposal, which appears to have been drafted without Ukraine’s involvement, would force the country to cede occupied territory, slash the size of its army and abandon its bid for NATO membership. It would also bar NATO troops from entering Ukraine.

Zelenskyy, speaking in a video address on Friday, said Ukraine was approaching “one of the most difficult moments in our history” and “a very difficult choice”. “Either the loss of dignity, or the risk of losing a key partner. Either the difficult 28 points, or an extremely hard winter, the hardest one, and further risks.”

He stopped short of naming the United States, but his comments came just days after an American delegation visited Kyiv to restart stalled peace talks and presented the outline of the proposal.

The White House confirmed on Thursday that the plan exists but stressed it remained “in flux.” The document was drafted by Steve Witkoff, a Trump administration peace envoy, and Kirill Dmitriev, a Russian counterpart.

According to a draft circulated by a Ukrainian lawmaker, the proposed agreement would require Ukraine to recognise Russian control of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, amend its constitution to permanently renounce NATO membership, limit its armed forces to 600,000 troops, accept restrictions on Western military presence inside its borders.

In exchange, Kyiv would receive access to frozen Russian assets to fund reconstruction, along with vague “reliable security guarantees” and a promise of sanctions snap-back if Moscow violated the deal. Russia would obtain major concessions, including reintegration into global markets and readmission to the Group of 8.

Zelenskyy insisted Ukraine would not give Moscow “any reason to say that Ukraine does not want peace,” but vowed to “present arguments, propose alternatives, and search for solutions” in upcoming discussions.