Zelenskyy: US proposes Ukraine cede Donbas for NATO entry

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that the United States has, for the first time, proposed Ukraine ceding the Donbas region in exchange for NATO membership. Zelenskyy stated the US raised the question of whether Ukraine would withdraw from Donbas if it joined NATO. He emphasized he cannot decide alone and will consult Ukrainian society, while noting Russia is betting everything on a winter offensive. The proposal emerged after US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi. A Russian document demands NATO forces withdraw to 1997 positions, weakening Baltic states, while Moscow also seeks bans on NATO bases in the Baltics and Finland's exit from the alliance.