US floated Donbas withdrawal for Nato membership, Zelensky says

US negotiators have raised a proposal under which Ukraine would withdraw its remaining troops from the eastern Donbas region in exchange for Nato membership, as part of efforts to end the war with Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has claimed.

The United States has not confirmed Zelensky's remarks. An unnamed US official told the BBC that many ideas remain under discussion, but any final agreement would have to be accepted by both sides.

The comments from the Ukrainian leader came after US envoys held separate meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and with Zelensky.

In a statement released by the president's office on Saturday (14 November), Zelensky said: 'The Americans raised a question: what if Ukraine joins Nato? Would Ukraine withdraw from Donbas? This issue was raised for the first time.'

He added that if a specific proposal came with security guarantees for Ukraine, no restrictions on its military, and funding for reconstruction, he would put the matter to the public in a referendum.

On Thursday (12 November), US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met Putin in Moscow before travelling to Dublin, Ireland, to meet Zelensky.

Within hours of Zelensky's remarks becoming public, Kushner indirectly rejected any proposal to offer Ukraine Nato membership. He called for 'confidentiality' in the sensitive process and expressed some displeasure with Kyiv that 'maximalist' proposals and 'harsh political statements' from the talks had reached the media.

Analysts believe the US envoys may have been testing Ukraine's final position, or 'red line', on the occupied territory of Donbas. Zelensky, on the other hand, may have made the matter public to bring the stalled Nato membership question back onto the European security agenda.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Moscow currently occupies about one-fifth of Ukraine's territory, including most of the Donbas industrial region. Zelensky has consistently said Ukraine is not willing to give up its sovereign territory.

Recent comments by Putin and Kremlin officials, meanwhile, suggest Russia's position on the war has not changed. Moscow has demanded, as conditions for a peace deal, limits on the size of Ukraine's military, territorial concessions, and guarantees of Kyiv's neutrality. Russia has also said it will not agree to any ceasefire until Ukraine gives up its claim to the parts of Donbas Russian forces have not yet captured and to Crimea, seized in 2014.

Beyond the United States, other Nato member states are also cautious about offering Ukraine membership, and Moscow views it as an unacceptable threat directly on its border.

These issues are believed to have dominated the latest round of talks between Ukraine, Russia and the United States in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, this week.

Relations between Washington and Kyiv have been strained recently over Ukrainian strikes on oil facilities inside Russia. US President Donald Trump had asked Ukraine to temporarily halt those strikes to keep Russian diesel supplies flowing and world fuel prices down. In response, Zelensky accused US officials of restricting the Starlink internet service used in Ukraine's military operations.

Trump called for new elections in Ukraine, commenting: 'It's time for Ukraine to get a new president.' Elections are currently suspended in Ukraine under martial law. Zelensky has previously said he is ready to hold elections within months of a peace deal, and that he would be willing to step down as president in exchange for Nato membership.