Zelenskyy arrived in Berlin on Sunday, ready to trade Ukraine’s NATO bid for hard‑wired security guarantees from the West, while rejecting U.S. demands that the country cede territory to Russia. The Ukrainian president met with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in the Chancellery, where he said Kyiv expected guarantees similar to those enjoyed by NATO members. “These security guarantees are an opportunity to prevent another wave of Russian aggression,” he told reporters on WhatsApp. “And this is already a compromise on our part.”
Negotiations in Berlin
The talks are part of a broader effort by Washington to bridge the gap between Trump’s push for a quick end to the war and the realities on the ground. Zelenskyy said the guarantees must be legally binding and backed by the U.S. Congress, and he expects an update after a meeting between Ukrainian and U.S. military officials in Stuttgart. He will also meet separately with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and possibly other European leaders later that evening.
Donetsk and the Demilitarized Zone Proposal
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, has insisted that Ukraine withdraw its forces from the portion of Donetsk still under its control—a demand Kyiv has refused. The U.S. floated a plan for Ukraine to retreat from Donetsk and create a demilitarized free‑economic zone, a proposal Zelenskyy called unworkable. “I do not consider this fair, because who will manage this economic zone?” he said. “If Ukrainian troops withdraw 5–10 kilometres, for example, why do Russian troops not withdraw deeper into the occupied territories by the same distance?”
Zelenskyy described the issue as “very sensitive” and called for a freeze along the line of contact, adding that “today a fair possible option is we stand where we stand.”
Russian Perspectives
Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign‑affairs adviser, told the business daily Kommersant that Russian police and national guard would remain in parts of Donetsk even if it became a demilitarized zone. He warned that compromise could take a long time and that U.S. proposals had been “worsened” by alterations from Ukraine and its European allies. Speaking on Russian state TV, Ushakov said the contribution of Ukrainians and Europeans to the documents was unlikely to be constructive and that Moscow would have “very strong objections.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has led European efforts to support Ukraine alongside French President Emmanuel Macron and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, said on Saturday that the “decades of the ‘Pax Americana’ are largely over for us in Europe and for us in Germany as well.” He warned that Putin’s aim is “a fundamental change to the borders in Europe, the restoration of the old Soviet Union within its borders.” “If Ukraine falls, he won’t stop,” Merz said during a party conference in Munich.
Putin has denied plans to restore the Soviet Union or attack any European allies.
Ongoing Air Strikes
Ukraine’s air force reported that Russia launched ballistic missiles and 138 attack drones overnight. Of those, 110 were intercepted or downed, but missile and drone hits were recorded at six locations. Zelenskyy said that hundreds of thousands of families were still without power in the south, east, and northeast, and work was continuing to restore electricity, heat, and water after a large‑scale attack the previous night.
In the past week, Russia launched over 1,500 strike drones, nearly 900 guided aerial bombs, and 46 missiles of various types at Ukraine. “Ukraine needs peace on decent terms, and we are ready to work as constructively as possible. These days will be filled with diplomacy. It’s very important that it brings results,” Zelenskyy said.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said air defenses downed 235 Ukrainian drones late Saturday and early Sunday. In the Belgorod region, a drone injured a man and set his house ablaze in the village of Yasnye Zori, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said. Ukrainian drones struck an oil depot in Uryupinsk in the Volgograd region, triggering a fire, according to regional governor Andrei Bocharov. In the Krasnodar region, Ukrainian drones attacked the town of Afipsky, where an oil refinery is located; authorities said explosions shattered windows in residential buildings but did not report damage to the refinery.
Summit Remarks
President Trump remarked that the U.S. and Russia “haven’t quite gotten there” in the summit, but added that he and Putin “made some headway.”
Key Takeaways
- Zelenskyy is willing to abandon NATO ambitions for binding Western security guarantees.
- Ukraine rejects the U.S. proposal for a demilitarized economic zone in Donetsk.
- Russian officials insist on maintaining police presence in Donetsk and warn of slow compromise.
Zelenskyy’s Berlin visit underscores the complex mix of diplomatic negotiations, military realities, and geopolitical stakes that define the ongoing conflict.
