Zelensky reveals US-Ukraine plan to end war

Ukraine won some concessions in the latest version of a U.S.-led draft plan to end the Russian invasion, revealed by President Volodymyr Zelensky, though key questions remain over territory and whether Moscow could accept the new terms.

The 20-point plan, agreed on by U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators, was being reviewed by Moscow, but the Kremlin is unlikely to abandon its hardline territorial demands for full Ukrainian withdrawal from the east.

Zelensky conceded there are some points in the document that he does not like, but Kiev has succeeded in removing immediate requirements for Ukraine to withdraw from the Donetsk region or that land seized by Moscow's army would be recognized as Russian.

Nevertheless, the Ukrainian leader still indicated the proposal would pave the way for Kiev to pull some troops back, including from the 20 percent of the Donetsk region that it controls, where demilitarized zones would be established.

It also got rid of demands that Kiev must legally renounce its bid for NATO membership.

Zelensky presented the plan during a two-hour briefing with journalists, reading from a highlighted and annotated version.

"In the Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, the line of troop deployment as of the date of this agreement is de facto recognized as the line of contact," Zelensky said of the latest version.

"A working group will convene to determine the redeployment of forces necessary to end the conflict, as well as to define the parameters of potential future special economic zones," he added.

This appears to suggest the plan opens the way for, but delays, options that Ukraine was previously reluctant to consider, a withdrawal of troops and the creation of demilitarized zones.

"We are in a situation where the Russians want us to withdraw from the Donetsk region, while the Americans are trying to find a way," Zelensky said.

"They are looking for a demilitarized zone or a free economic zone, meaning a format that could satisfy both sides," he continued.

Any plan that involves Ukraine pulling back its troops would need to pass a referendum in Ukraine, Zelensky said.

On NATO, Zelensky said: "It is the choice of NATO members whether to have Ukraine or not. Our choice has been made. We moved away from the proposed changes to the Constitution of Ukraine that would have prohibited Ukraine from joining NATO."

Nevertheless, the prospects of Ukraine being admitted to the bloc appear slim-to-none, as it has been ruled out by Washington.

Moscow has repeatedly said NATO membership for Ukraine is unacceptable, presenting it as one of the reasons it invaded in the first place.

The plan sees joint U.S.-Ukrainian-Russian management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, occupied by Russian troops. Zelensky said he does not want any Russian oversight of the facility.

He also said Ukraine would hold presidential elections only after an agreement is signed, something both Putin and Trump have been pushing for.