US negotiators have suggested Ukraine could join NATO in exchange for ceding parts of eastern Donbas to Russia, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday.
Zelenskyy said the proposal emerged during recent peace talks in Abu Dhabi and Ireland. "The Americans raised a question: 'What if Ukraine joins NATO? Would Ukraine withdraw from Donbas?'" he told reporters. He described this as the first time the question of linking NATO membership to territorial concessions had been raised.
Zelenskyy rejected the proposal. He said the parts of Donbas in question are areas Russia does not currently control. He also refused to commit Ukraine to neutrality, saying that would require changing the country's constitution.
Zelenskyy indicated he would consider a different package. If the US and NATO partners offered security guarantees, military and reconstruction funds, and a recovery plan, he said he would put the question of ceding parts of Donbas to a national referendum. Any such arrangement would not involve recognising occupied territories as Russian, he stressed.
Russia has long opposed Ukrainian NATO membership. Putin cited this opposition as one reason for launching Russia's full-blown invasion in 2022.
Fighting continued. Russia reported that Ukraine fired about 1,200 drones at the country on Friday, targeting oil infrastructure. Ukraine reported Russian attacks on a hospital and the port of Odesa.