December 16, 2025
Zelensky: Ukraine will not recognize Donbas as Russian either de jure or de facto thumbnail
Ukraine News Today

Zelensky: Ukraine will not recognize Donbas as Russian either de jure or de facto

Zelensky noted that there is still no consensus on the territorial issue, which is one of the key ones”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine will not recognize the territory of Donbas as Russian either de jure or de facto.

“The Americans want to find a compromise, they propose a ‘free economic zone.’ And I will emphasize once again: “free economic zone” does not mean that it is under the leadership of the Russian Federation. These are important features of any Donbas format for me. Neither de jure nor de facto will we recognize Donbas as Russian – the part that is temporarily occupied,” he said, answering journalists’ questions on December 15.

At the same time, Zelensky noted that there is still no consensus on the territorial issue, which is one of the key ones. But in other issues, according to him, there is progress, regarding security guarantees – “serious progress”.

“We are talking about security guarantees that must be voted on in the US Congress. I see that President Trump’s team is ready for this. It is important that this is a legally binding responsibility of our partners in case of violation of peace agreements or ceasefire by the aggressor, by the Russian Federation. That is, there will be a reaction similar to what is in Article 5 of NATO,” the president added.

On December 14 and 15, Zelenskyi was in Germany, where the Ukrainian delegation led by the President of Ukraine held talks in Berlin with the special representative of the President of the United States, Steve Witkoff, and the son-in-law of the President of the United States, Jared Kushner.

The Secretary of the NSDC, Rustem Umyerov, who also participated in the negotiations, called them constructive and led to “real progress.”

In recent weeks, the US has again been trying to reach a peace agreement between Moscow and Kyiv. As a result of the week-long negotiations, a document was prepared that is more acceptable to Kyiv, but there are several controversial issues, in particular regarding the territory and security guarantees.

The President of Ukraine previously stated that the negotiators, who are discussing a peace initiative mediated by the United States, maintain disagreements regarding the territories. Subsequently, Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the issue of possible compromises regarding territorial issues in a peaceful way should be decided by the Ukrainian people “in the format of elections or a referendum.”

In response, the Kremlin declared that “the entire Donbas is Russian.”

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