On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump encouraged Ukraine to accept his administration’s proposal to end the conflict with Russia by surrendering territory, asserting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would “have to be okay with it.”
“He’s going to have to accept it, and if he doesn’t, then they should continue fighting,” Trump remarked to reporters who inquired about Zelensky’s lukewarm response to the initiative.
“At some point, he will need to concede something,” Trump mentioned during a meeting in the Oval Office with Zohran Mamdani, the future mayor of New York City.
Zelensky, meanwhile, expressed his opposition to the American proposal on Friday, emphasizing that he would not “betray” his nation over the 28-point plan, which is perceived in Kyiv as being heavily favorable to the Kremlin.
The 79-year-old Republican has grown increasingly frustrated by his failure to contribute to ending the war that began with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and he is now advocating for a quicker resolution.
Earlier that day, Trump announced a deadline of November 27 — coinciding with the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S. — for Ukraine to accept his proposal intended to conclude the conflict.
“I’ve set many deadlines, but when things are progressing positively, you usually prolong the timelines. However, we believe Thursday is a reasonable timeframe,” Trump said during an interview with Fox News Radio.
The proposed plan would require Ukraine to relinquish a significant portion of its eastern territory to Russia and reduce the size of its military, according to a draft document obtained by AFP.
Additionally, Kyiv would commit to never joining NATO and would not be granted the Western peacekeeping forces they have requested, although European warplanes would be positioned in Poland.
Trump indicated that if the hostilities persisted, the Ukrainians would ultimately lose the territories they would need to transfer to Russia according to his peace proposal.
“Regardless of opinions, they have shown remarkable bravery,” he said in reference to the Ukrainian forces engaged in combat against Russia.
When questioned about the potential for further Russian aggression in Europe following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Trump asserted that Russian President Vladimir Putin “is not seeking more war.”
Trump also remarked that Putin is “suffering consequences” for the ongoing conflict, which he noted had lasted nearly four years when it was initially expected to be resolved in just one day.
