The US promises Ukraine “a demilitarized zone” the likes of which have never been seen along the eastern front. What do the Ukrainians say?

The United States is considering creating a globally unprecedented “high-tech demilitarized zone” along Ukraine's eastern front – provided the Ukrainian military withdraws from parts of the Donetsk region, the Financial Times reports. The proposal comes amid increasingly intense negotiations regarding the end of the war, but which risk being blocked by the issue of territorial concessions.

According to the British daily, both Washington and Moscow are demanding that Kiev give up about a quarter of the territory still held by Ukraine in Donetsk province, as well as a smaller area in the neighboring Luhansk region. These territories have a strategic and symbolic value for Ukraine and represent the core of its heavily fortified positions in the east of the country.

The FT notes that, seeking to achieve through negotiations what it has failed to win militarily since 2014, Russia is aiming to control an “arc of fortifications” that includes the cities of Pokrovsk, Kostiantynivka, Drujkivka, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

Sources close to the talks say Trump administration officials, including White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, have encouraged the Ukrainian delegation to accept a “territorial exchange,” which Washington considers an inevitable component of any deal with Moscow. Two senior Ukrainian officials say Witkoff, who has reportedly held six meetings this year with President Vladimir Putin, insisted that ceding 25 percent of Donetsk would allow for a “just peace” and avoid a devastating extension of the conflict.

President Donald Trump, for his part, claims that Ukraine “has no more assets” and that it would risk much greater territorial losses next year if it rejects what he calls “rational” concessions.

What do the Ukrainians say?

Mihailo Bieleskov, senior analyst of the “Come Back Alive” foundation, believes that the American proposal on the unilateral withdrawal of Ukrainian troops is “probably the most serious attempt by the Trump team to bring the positions of Moscow and Kiev closer together.” But he warns that talks of territorial cessions risk fracturing Ukrainian society and leaving areas vulnerable to future Russian advances. The alternative would be to refuse concessions, at the risk of losing Washington's crucial support.

Early versions of Trump's proposed 28-point peace plan include the formation of a “neutral and demilitarized buffer zone” after the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Donetsk. The territory would be “internationally recognized as part of the Russian Federation”.

Last month, Trump sent US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to Kiev in an attempt to gain the support of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. However, the visit raised concern both at the level of the Ukrainian government and among some European diplomats.

Driscoll said Washington is prepared to provide security guarantees under the deal and help create a “high-tech demilitarized zone” along the eastern line, provided Ukrainian forces withdraw. Ukrainian officials say the US proposal is inspired by the model of the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea.

Zelenskiy has consistently expressed his reluctance to the idea of ​​such a zone, which he sees as a recipe for a frozen conflict that would give Moscow time to regroup. The FT notes that the current version of the plan does not include the deployment of Western troops to Ukraine, and the Ukrainian president has said that certain elements of security guarantees remain unclear.