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The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, assured that American negotiators have raised the possibility of Ukraine withdrawing the troops it still maintains in the Donbas region in exchange for its entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
The president's statements, made this Saturday, come after US envoys visited Moscow and European leaders met at a European Union (EU) summit in Dublin, Ireland, to discuss efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Kyiv has long sought membership in the military alliance as a condition of any peace agreement, in order to deter future threats, while Russia has declared that the presence of another NATO member on its border is unacceptable.
Zelensky has also repeatedly stated that Ukraine is not willing to give up its sovereign territory, despite Moscow's demands that it give up the Donbas.
"The Americans posed the question: 'What would happen if Ukraine joined NATO? Would Ukraine withdraw from Donbas?' "It was the first time this issue was raised," Zelensky told reporters on Saturday.
The president stated that he would be willing to submit the proposal to a referendum as long as it included security guarantees, freedom to maintain the capabilities of the Ukrainian army and resources to rebuild the country.
US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff traveled to the Irish capital on Thursday to meet with Zelensky, following a round of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Statements from both Putin and Kremlin officials suggest that Russia's stance on the war has not changed and that Moscow's demands for territory and neutrality continue to far exceed what Ukraine is willing to consider.
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Moscow had already proposed as conditions for a peace agreement limiting the size of the Ukrainian army, territorial concessions and Kyiv's guarantee of neutrality.
Ukraine has rejected these proposals, arguing that such restrictions would hamper its ability to repel any future invasion.
However, there have recently been signs that the two may find common ground: last month, US first lady Melania Trump managed to negotiate a temporary ceasefire in the Kherson region to allow evacuations and aid delivery.
Previously, US officials had said that Ukraine joining NATO was off the table.
Zelensky said Saturday that the US proposal made him believe that "NATO is back on the table."
However, he warned. "They've also taken cues from Putin, and this is an extremely difficult conversation," he said.
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Currently, Russia occupies approximately one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, including most of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces that make up Donbas.
Giving up the small portions of land Ukraine still controls there would have symbolic meaning for Kyiv, as it would constitute an acceptance that Donbas is Russian territory.
Zelensky had previously spoken of recapturing Russian-controlled areas in four Ukrainian provinces, as well as the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014.
The latest round of talks follows a period of tense relations between Kyiv and Washington in the wake of Ukrainian attacks on oil facilities deep inside Russia, which US President Donald Trump had asked Ukraine to suspend to facilitate supplies of Russian diesel to ease global fuel prices, which have been rising since the US and Israel attacked Iran in February.
Zelensky then accused US officials of limiting Ukraine's Starlink internet service, which it uses to coordinate defensive operations, while Trump said it was "time for Ukraine to have a new president" and called for new elections.
The elections are suspended while Ukraine remains under martial law, but Zelensky has previously said he was willing to hold them within months of a peace deal and would give up the presidency in exchange for NATO membership.
This article was originally written in English and we used an artificial intelligence tool to translate it. A BBC journalist reviewed the text before publication. Learn more about how we use AI.
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