Zelensky Proposes New Ukraine Peace Plan

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed regret over his recent exchange with U.S. President Donald Trump and urged a return to cooperation after Washington paused its military support to Ukraine, Euronews reported.

Zelensky described his tense meeting with Trump at the White House as "regrettable," emphasizing the need to move forward constructively. I Photo: Володимир Зеленський Facebook

Zelensky stated that he and his team are "ready to work under President Trump's strong leadership to achieve a lasting peace" and outlined the initial stages of a new peace plan for Ukraine.

He described his tense meeting with Trump at the White House as "regrettable," emphasizing the need to move forward constructively.

"It is regrettable that it happened this way. It is time to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive."

Zelensky tentatively proposed that the first steps of a potential peace agreement include:

• The release of prisoners.

• A "truce in the sky"—banning missiles, long-range drones, and bombings of energy and other civilian infrastructure.

• A "truce at sea"—to be implemented immediately, provided Russia does the same.

"We want to move very quickly through all subsequent stages and work with the U.S. to finalize a strong, lasting peace agreement," Associated Press (AP) reported.

The pause in U.S. support is not expected to have an immediate effect on the battlefield.

Ukrainian forces have successfully slowed Russian advances along the roughly 1,000-kilometer front line, particularly in the fiercely contested eastern region of Donetsk, located about 700 kilometers from Kyiv.

Despite suffering significant troop and equipment losses, Russia has failed to achieve a strategically meaningful breakthrough.

Critics argue that Trump's approach may align with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s interests, as Russia continues to suffer heavy casualties in a "special military operation" the Kremlin once claimed would be completed in three days.

Now in its fourth year, the war has become a daily source of embarrassment for Putin. Some speculate that by allowing Trump to broker a settlement, Putin can avoid further public humiliation while Trump positions himself as a peacemaker acting under Putin’s influence.