US floated Donbas concessions for NATO membership, Zelenskyy says he refused

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said US negotiators floated the idea that Ukraine should cede parts of eastern Donbas in exchange for NATO membership. He spoke after the latest rounds of Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Abu Dhabi and Ireland.

Zelenskyy said this was the first time the question of linking NATO membership to territorial concessions had been raised. In his words, the Americans asked what would happen if Ukraine joined NATO and whether Ukraine would withdraw from Donbas, which is why he believes NATO is back on the agenda.

Zelenskyy said the parts of the Donbas region the US asked about are areas Russia does not control. He said he refused to cede territory.

The Ukrainian president said Russian President Vladimir Putin's desire to change borders in Europe is a fact. He said this is part of Putin's concept of revising security guarantees in Europe, and warned that precisely such things lead to wars or escalations.

Zelenskyy did say, however, that if Ukraine received a comprehensive package including security guarantees, military and reconstruction funds and a recovery plan, he would put the question of ceding parts of Donbas to a national referendum. If the American side confirmed this together with other NATO partners, he would ask Ukrainian society whether it accepts it or not.

He stressed that any arrangement would not involve recognising occupied territories as Russian. He also rejected the possibility of Ukraine committing to neutrality, saying that would require changing the country's constitution. In his words, if Putin expects Ukraine's neutrality to be enshrined, that is not going to happen, and Ukraine is not in NATO right now anyway.

Putin has long said that Ukrainian membership of NATO is a red line for Moscow, citing the issue as one reason for launching Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.

Despite the diplomatic push, Russia and Ukraine reported numerous overnight attacks. Russian officials reported on Friday that about 1,200 Ukrainian drones were fired at the country, with oil infrastructure among the targets, while Ukraine reported attacks on a hospital and the port of Odesa.

At the summit in Ireland over recent days, EU leaders agreed that Europe's team for any Ukraine peace talks would comprise five major military powers — non-EU member Britain plus France, Germany, Italy and Poland — as well as EU officials. They would hold talks with US and Ukrainian officials, but not with Russia.