Zelenskyy said Ukraine may face a choice between ‘loss of dignity’ or losing key U.S. support.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Nov. 21 that his country is facing “one of the most difficult moments in our history,” using a nationally televised address to say that Kyiv is under extraordinary pressure to accept a 28-point U.S. peace proposal that would remake Ukraine’s security posture, redraw territorial lines, and permanently bar NATO membership.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine is under “the heaviest pressure we have faced,” telling his compatriots that the country may be pushed toward adopting an agreement that could mean accepting hard-to-stomach terms to secure peace.
“Either a loss of dignity, or the risk of losing a key partner,” he said, referring to the United States.
“Either accepting a difficult 28-point plan, or entering an extremely hard winter—the hardest yet—with further risks beyond it. A life without freedom, without dignity, without justice.”
Zelenskyy said he would offer alternatives to some of the most contentious points of the 28-point proposal in round-the-clock talks with the United States and Europe, while vowing not to betray his oath to defend Ukraine’s independence.
“Among all the points of the plan, at least two must not be overlooked—Ukrainian dignity and Ukrainian freedom,” he said.
“We must do everything so that what happens next is the end of the war—and not the end of Ukraine.”
While details of the 28-point plan have not been released publicly, the proposal itself has been confirmed by the Trump administration. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Epoch Times in a statement that the framework was designed to provide “full security guarantees and deterrence for Ukraine, Europe, and Russia” and to create “financial opportunities for Ukraine to rebuild, and for Russia to rejoin the global economy.”
“This plan was crafted to reflect the realities of the situation, after years of a devastating war, to find the best win-win scenario, where both parties gain more than they must give,” Leavitt said.
A delegation of senior U.S. military officials met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Nov. 20 to discuss steps toward a peace deal.
The U.S. ambassador in Kyiv and the Army public affairs chief traveling with the delegation described the meetings with Ukrainian officials as a success, telling Reuters the United States is seeking an “aggressive timeline” for Kyiv to sign off on the agreement.
President Donald Trump himself appeared to confirm that timeline during an interview on Brian Kilmeade’s radio program, calling next Thursday—Thanksgiving—an appropriate target date for Zelenskyy to accept the ceasefire framework.
“I’ve had a lot of deadlines, but if things are working well, you tend to extend the deadlines,” Trump said. “But Thursday … we think is an appropriate time.”
What’s in the 28-Point Plan?
While the full text of the proposal has not been officially released, leaked drafts circulated among Ukrainian lawmakers and published by The Associated Press outline a sweeping set of obligations and concessions.
By Tom Ozimek
