Zelensky says he is willing to concede Ukrainian territory to Russia to end war
The Ukrainian president said his country could give up land temporarily in exchange for a “Nato umbrella” over the territory Ukraine still holds
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday said he was willing to concede territory to Russia to end the war for the first time.
The Ukrainian president said his country could give up land temporarily in exchange for a "Nato umbrella" over the territory Ukraine still holds, reports Telegraph.
He added that after a ceasefire was agreed, Kyiv could "diplomatically" negotiate the return of the territory in the east that is currently under Russian control.
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"If we want to stop the hot stage of the war, we should take under [the] Nato umbrella the territory of Ukraine that we have under our control," Zelensky said in an interview with Sky News.
"That's what we need to do fast, and then Ukraine can get back the other part of its territory diplomatically," he added.
Zelensky's comments represent a considerable shift in his position.
Kyiv has previously said it would continue to fight Russia until Ukraine was returned to its internationally recognised borders, which include the four regions annexed by Vladimir Putin in 2022, as well as Crimea.
The shift comes as Donald Trump prepares to take office with a promise to end the war on "day one". Meanwhile, support for a peace deal is also growing among European allies.
Under plans floated by Trump's team, a peace deal would see the current front line frozen in place, and Ukraine agreeing to shelve its ambitions to join Nato for 20 years.
If agreed, the US would pump Ukraine with weapons to deter future Russian aggression.
Zelensky hinted in his interview that the "Nato umbrella" would not be full membership of Nato, something Putin has rejected as part of any peace deal.
Rather, it could mean Nato member states, including the US, the UK, France and Germany, providing individual security guarantees to Ukraine.
Asked whether Kyiv would be willing to give up territory to Moscow altogether in exchange for full Nato membership, he said, "No one has offered us to be in Nato with just one part or another part of Ukraine."
He added that it "could be possible, but no one offered".
He also said he would be willing to consider ceding the Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine in exchange for the free parts of Ukraine to be brought under the "Nato umbrella".
