Volodymyr Zelensky discusses the outlines of a ceasefire by calling for partial protection of the territory by NATO

Questioned on the British channel Sky News, the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, seemed to begin, on Friday, November 29, to soften his speech concerning the integrity of Ukraine's territory, in order to allow a freezing of the conflict with Russia.

“If we want to end the hot phase of the war, we must bring the territory of Ukraine that we control under NATO umbrella”declared Mr. Zelensky, according to a voice-over translation of his remarks in English. “This is what we need to do quickly, and then Ukraine can get the other part of its territory back through diplomatic channels”he continued, suggesting that he was willing to wait before reclaiming areas currently occupied by the Russian army, if such an agreement could provide security for the rest of Ukraine and end the fighting.

Russia controls about 18% of Ukraine's internationally recognized territory, including the Crimean peninsula which it annexed in 2014. Moscow has also annexed the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhia regions, although it does not fully control them.

kyiv has so far always ruled out ceding territories in exchange for peace, while Vladimir Putin demands that the Ukrainian army withdraw from more territories and refuses any accession of his adversary to NATO. The Russian president has already asked kyiv to abandon its ambitions to join the Atlantic Alliance if it wants a peace deal.

“Guarantees that Putin will not return”

Nearly three years after the launch of a large-scale offensive by Moscow, the planned return of Donald Trump to the White House in January 2025 has rekindled questions about the possibility of a ceasefire. The Republican criticized US aid to kyiv and claimed during his campaign that he could end the war in a matter of hours, although he did not say how.

The conflict has recently intensified with massive strikes on territories controlled by kyiv, with Vladimir Putin threatening to hit decision-making centers in the Ukrainian capital with his new “Orechnik” missile in response to the sending of missiles provided by the States -United States and the United Kingdom on Russian territory. And Moscow's forces have made territorial gains in recent weeks, at a speed not seen since the start of 2022, against a weakened Ukrainian army.

Mr Zelensky has frequently insisted that any offer of NATO membership must be made to all of Ukraine, but his comments on Friday suggested he may accept that Alliance protection Atlantic, such as the collective defense clause of Article 5, only applies to territory controlled by kyiv. “If we talk about a ceasefire, [nous avons besoin de] guarantees that Putin will not return »and said M. Zelensky in English.

Mr. Macron condemns Moscow’s “irresponsible rhetoric”

In the context of an escalation of the conflict for two weeks, the Ukrainian president had a series of telephone calls with Western leaders, notably the British Keir Starmer, the French Emmanuel Macron and the German Olaf Scholz.

On this occasion, Emmanuel Macron “condemned in the strongest possible terms Russia’s indiscriminate strikes which continue to intensify against cities, against civilians and against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure”according to the French presidency. “These strikes, the increased cooperation with North Korea, and the irresponsible rhetoric that accompanies them, are part of an unacceptable logic of escalation on the part of Russia”added Mr. Macron.

The head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, also spoke with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, on Friday, to inform him of the “American objectives regarding sustainable support for Ukraine”said State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller. Joe Biden's administration has stepped up its support for kyiv since Mr. Trump won the election, transferring more weapons and allowing Ukraine to fire long-range missiles into Russian territory.