Ukraine’s Zelensky ditches NATO ambition ahead of peace talks

BERLIN/KYIV - Ukraine has relinquished its ambition of joining the NATO military alliance
in exchange for Western security guarantees as a compromise to end the war with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said ahead of talks with US envoys in Berlin.

The move marks a major shift for Ukraine, which has fought to join NATO as a safeguard against Russian attacks and has such an aspiration included in its Constitution. It also meets one of Russia’s war aims, although Kyiv has so far held firm against ceding territory to Moscow.

Mr Zelensky said on Dec 14 that the US, and European and other partners’ security guarantees instead of NATO membership was a compromise on Ukraine’s side.

“From the very beginning, Ukraine’s desire was to join NATO; these are real security guarantees. Some partners from the US and Europe did not support this direction,” he said in reply to questions from reporters in a WhatsApp chat.

“Thus, today, bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the US, Article 5-like guarantees for us from the US and security guarantees from European colleagues, as well as other countries – Canada, Japan – are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion,” Mr Zelensky said.

“And it is already a compromise from our part,” he noted, adding that the security guarantees should be legally binding.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly demanded that Ukraine officially renounce its NATO ambitions and withdraw troops from about 10 per cent of Donbas, which Kyiv still controls.

Moscow has also said that Ukraine must be a neutral country and that no NATO troops can be stationed in Ukraine.

Russian sources said earlier in 2025 that Mr Putin wants a “written” pledge by major Western powers not to enlarge the US-led NATO alliance eastwards – shorthand for formally ruling out membership to Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova and other former Soviet republics.

Mr Zelensky had earlier called for a “dignified” peace and guarantees that Russia would not attack Ukraine again as he prepared to meet US envoys and European allies
in Berlin to end Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.

Under pressure from US President Donald Trump to sign a peace deal that initially backed Moscow’s demands, Mr Zelensky accused Russia of dragging out the war through deadly bombings of cities and Ukraine’s power and water supplies.

Although the exact make-up of the meetings on Dec 14 and 15 have not been made public, a US official said Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner were travelling to Germany for talks involving Ukrainians and Europeans.

The choice to send Mr Witkoff, who has led negotiations with Ukraine and Russia on a US peace proposal, appeared to be a signal that Washington saw a chance of progress nearly four years after Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Mr Zelensky said Ukraine, the Europeans and US are looking at a 20-point plan and that at the end of this, there is a ceasefire. He said Kyiv has no direct talks with Russia.

Mr Zelensky said a ceasefire along the current front lines would be a fair option. Russia has demanded Kyiv withdraw its troops
from parts of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions that Ukraine still holds.

“Ukraine needs peace on dignified terms, and we are ready to work as constructively as possible. The coming days will be filled with diplomacy. It is critically important that it delivers results,” Mr Zelensky said earlier on X.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is hosting Mr Zelensky and European leaders for a summit in the German capital on Dec 15, the latest in a series of public shows of support for the Ukrainian leader from allies across Europe.

‘Critical moment’

Britain, France and Germany have been working to refine the US proposals, which, in a draft disclosed in November, called for Kyiv to cede more territory, abandon its ambition to join NATO, and accept limits on its armed forces.

European allies have described this as a “critical moment” that could shape Ukraine’s future, and sought to shore up Kyiv’s finances by leveraging frozen Russian central bank assets to fund Kyiv’s military and civilian budget.

Mr Putin hosted Mr Witkoff and Mr Kushner at a meeting earlier in December that the Kremlin praised as “constructive”, although no major breakthroughs were reached.

Mr Zelensky said hundreds of thousands were still without power after Russian strikes on energy, heating and water supplies across swathes of Ukraine, posting pictures of burning and destroyed buildings.

“Russia is dragging out the war and seeks to inflict as much harm as possible on our people,” he said.

“In total, the Russians launched more than 1,500 attack drones, nearly 900 guided aerial bombs and 46 missiles of various types against Ukraine this week,” he added. REUTERS