Volodymyr Zelenskiy warns Ukraine could lose its freedom or U.S. support if it accepts a Trump-endorsed peace plan aligning with key Russian demands, urging caution.
The U.S. president confirmed what two sources told Reuters when he told Fox News Radio that he thought Thursday was a suitable deadline for Kyiv to embrace the plan.
According to Washington's 28- point offer, Ukraine must give up its bournes to join NATO, accept military limitations, and cede land.
Vladimir Putin, the chairman of Russia, stated late on Friday that the U.S. plan might serve as the foundation for a final agreement of the conflict, which has been going on for nearly four times. In history, he has refused to compromise on Russia's major security and territorial enterprises.
Zelenskiy urged Ukrainians to unite and vowed never to forsake Ukraine in a somber statement to the country earlier on Friday in the street outside his office, a venue he seldom utilizes for important speeches.
"Now is one of the most difficult moments of our history... Now, Ukraine can face a very difficult choice — either losing dignity or risk losing a major partner,"
he said.
"I will fight 24/7 to ensure that at least two points in the plan are not overlooked – the dignity and freedom of Ukrainians,"
Zelenskiy said.
According to the plan, Russia would give up lower portions of its home in other areas, while Ukraine would have to leave home it still controls in eastern businesses that Russia claims to have seized.
Ukraine would be permanently averted from joining the NATO service alliance, and its fortified forces would be limited at 600,000 troops.
Moscow would be accepted back into the G8 group of industrialized nations, sanctions on Russia would be gradually lifted, frozen Russian assets would be combined into an investment fund, and Washington would receive a portion of the earnings.
"Ukraine will receive robust security guarantees"
is the only sentence that addresses one of Ukraine's primary requests, which is for enforceable guarantees comparable to NATO's mutual defense clause to dissuade Russia from attacking again.
While expressing some frustration with Moscow, Trump has acknowledged some of Russia's explanations for its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
He canceled a planned summit with Putin last month and put sanctions on Russia's two largest oil companies. These sanctions are scheduled to take full effect on Friday, which is Washington's deadline for international purchasers to stop purchasing Russian oil.
"Their whole economy is based on oil,"
Trump stated on Friday, adding that he anticipated the "powerful" penalties will have the desired effect on Russia. He declared that he would not lift the sanctions prior to putting the 28-point plan into action.
How would the plan affect Ukraine's military size and conscription?
The U.S.- proposed plan for Ukraine would significantly reduce the size of Ukraine’s service, limiting the number of active labor forces as part of the peace terms. This would probably cause Ukraine to cut back on conscription and potentially end or dock mandatory military service, transitioning rather toward a lower, professional force.
Presently, Ukraine is laboriously conscripting knockouts of thousands of men progressing 25 to 60 to sustain its defense sweats amid ongoing conflict. Still, the proposed plan’s strict limits on military size would force a major reduction in these conscription sweats, constraining Ukraine’s capability to rally and replenish forces.
The plan's conditions include Ukraine renouncing its NATO aspirations and agreeing to a snap on territorial claims, which pressures the country to borrow a lower militarized posture.