"Who will govern this territory, which they are calling a free economic zone' or a demilitarised zone' they don't know, said the Ukrainian president, speaking with journalists in Kyiv on Thursday. Zelenskyy said Ukraine did not believe the plan was fair without guarantees that Russian troops would not simply take over the zone after a Ukrainian withdrawal. If one side's troops have to retreat and the other side stays where they are, then what will hold back these other troops, the Russians?"
"Or what will stop them disguising themselves as civilians and taking over this free economic zone? This is all very serious. It's not a fact that Ukraine would agree to it, but if you are talking about a compromise then it has to be a fair compromise, said Zelenskyy. He said if Ukraine did agree to such a scheme, there would need to be elections or a referendum to ratify it, saying only the Ukrainian people could make decisions on territorial concessions."
"Under the current US plans, said Zelenskyy, Ukraine would withdraw from Donbas, where Russia is advancing, while the frontlines would be frozen in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. Russia would give up a few small pockets of land it controls in other regions. Zelenskyy has been under immense pressure from Donald Trump to sign up to the US peace plan. In recent days Trump has attacked Zelenskyy, claiming he has not even read the draft peace plan."
The United States has proposed that Ukraine withdraw its troops from the Donbas region in exchange for a US-created free economic zone in Ukrainian-controlled areas. The proposal would freeze frontlines in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia while Russia would relinquish a few small pockets of territory elsewhere. Ukraine insists on guarantees preventing Russian occupation after any withdrawal and demands mechanisms to ensure fairness, including elections or a referendum to ratify territorial concessions. Major concerns include the risk of Russian forces remaining or disguising themselves as civilians and sustained pressure from the US president to accept the plan.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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