During a meeting with journalists, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gave details of a peace plan that Kiev has developed jointly with Washington. He stressed that this is a basic document on ending the war.
He said that Russia should comment on the plan on 24 December during a meeting with the US side.
He also noted that Ukraine is ready to meet with the US at the level of leaders to resolve sensitive issues. In particular, this concerns the issue of territories.
We bring you the detailed text of the 20-point plan as conveyed by the Ukrainian portal Unian on the basis of Zelensky's statements:
Point 1: Ukraine's sovereignty will be reaffirmed.
"We state that Ukraine is a sovereign state and all signatories to the agreement confirm this with their signatures," Zelensky said.
Point 2: "This document constitutes a complete and unconditional non-aggression agreement between Russia and Ukraine. It states that to maintain long-term peace, a monitoring mechanism will be established to control the line of contact through space-based unmanned monitoring, to provide early warning of violations and to resolve conflicts. Technical groups will agree on all the details," the president said.
Point 3: Ukraine will get "strong" security guarantees.
Point 4: The strength of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will remain at the level of 800 thousand soldiers in peacetime.
Point 5: The US, NATO and European signatory states will provide Ukraine with security guarantees that mirror Article 5.
According to the Ukrainian President, this point has the following components:
- If Russia invades Ukraine, in addition to a coordinated military response, all global sanctions against Russia will be reinstated;
- if Ukraine invades Russian territory or opens fire on Russian territory without provocation, the security guarantees will be considered null and void. If Russia opens fire on Ukraine, the security guarantees will come into force;
- the agreement does not exclude bilateral security assurances.
Point 6: Russia will enshrine the policy of non-aggression towards Europe and Ukraine in all necessary laws and ratification documents, including ratification by a significant majority in the State Duma.
Point 7: Ukraine will become a member of the European Union at a specific time, while gaining short-term privileged access to the European market.
According to Zelensky, this is a bilateral negotiation between the US and Ukraine at the moment, without confirmation from Europe. At the same time, he stressed that Ukraine wants to obtain a specific date for EU accession, as it considers this to be one of the security guarantees for Kiev.
Point 8: This point concerns a strong global development package for Ukraine, which will be defined in a separate agreement on investment and future prosperity and will cover a wide range of economic areas.
Point 9: According to the President, this is about the creation of funds for the reconstruction of Ukraine. He stated that the goal now is to raise $800 billion through equity capital, grants, debt instruments and private sector contributions to enable Ukraine to reach its full potential.
Point 10: Upon conclusion of this agreement, Ukraine will accelerate the process of concluding a free trade agreement with the United States.
Point 11: Ukraine affirms that it will remain a nuclear-weapon-free state in accordance with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
Point 12: The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant will be operated jointly by three countries - Ukraine, the US and the Russian Federation.
According to the President, this is a US proposal. Russia is of the opinion that the plant should be operated by itself. Ukraine proposes that the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant be operated by a joint venture in which the US and Ukraine would have an equal 50/50 share. According to the Ukrainian position, 50 percent of the electricity produced would go to Ukraine and the US would decide separately on the distribution of the rest.
According to Zelensky, the U.S. proposes to split the plant's capacity between Kiev, Moscow and Washington in a 33 percent ratio for each side.
Point 13: Both countries commit to implementing educational programs in schools and throughout society that promote understanding and tolerance of different cultures and eliminate racism and prejudice. Ukraine will implement EU rules on religious tolerance and the protection of minority languages.
Point 14: According to Zelensky, this point concerns the issue of territories and is the most complex in the whole plan. According to him, in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions, the line of deployment of troops on the date of conclusion of this agreement is the de facto recognised line of contact.
He said that a working group must meet on this issue to determine the redeployment of forces needed to end the conflict, as well as the parameters of possible future special economic zones.
"We are in a situation where the Russians want us to withdraw from the Donetsk region, and the Americans are trying to find a way to make it not be a 'withdrawal' - because we don't agree with withdrawal. They want to find the format of a demilitarised zone or a free economic zone, a solution that can take into account the views of both sides," Zelensky said.
He explained that if the first variant of the plan, i.e. ending the war on the line of combat contact, fails, there are two more options. The first is the continuation of combat operations. The second envisages that the Russian Federation must withdraw its troops from the Dnepropetrovsk, Mykolayiv, Sumy and Kharkiv regions for the agreement to take effect. Subsequently, 'free economic zones' could potentially be created on the territory of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, as well as in the Enerkhodar area.
According to the President, he would like to leave the issue of territories and free economic zones to be resolved by the leaders.
Point 15: Once future territorial agreements have been agreed, both the Russian Federation and Ukraine commit not to change these agreements by the use of force.
Point 16: Russia will not prevent Ukraine from using the Dnieper River and the Black Sea for commercial purposes. A separate maritime and access agreement will be concluded, which will include freedom of navigation and transport. As part of this agreement, the Kinburg Spit will be demilitarised.
Item 17: A Humanitarian Committee will be established to address outstanding issues. This will address, inter alia, the return of all remaining prisoners of war, including those sentenced by the Russian system since 2014 on an 'all-for-all' basis, as well as the return of detained civilians and hostages, including children and political prisoners. In addition, measures will be taken to address the problems and suffering of the victims of the conflict.
Point 18: Ukraine is to hold elections as soon as possible after the signing of the agreement. According to Mr Zelensky, this specifically concerns the election of the President of Ukraine.
Point 19: The agreement will be legally binding. Its implementation will be monitored and guaranteed by the Peace Council chaired by President Trump. Ukraine, Europe, NATO, Russia and the US will be part of this mechanism. Sanctions will be imposed for breaches of the agreement.
Point 20: Once all parties have agreed to this agreement, a full ceasefire will come into force immediately.
According to the Ukrainian President, Kiev must submit this agreement for ratification. This process can happen through parliament and/or a country-wide referendum. The agreement will enter into force once the obligations have been fulfilled by both parties in cases where they are to be fulfilled in advance according to the agreement.