The United States proposed demilitarized zones in Donbas and on part of the Kinburn Spit in peace negotiations, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He added that there is no progress on territorial issues for now.
Zelensky told journalists of this on Tuesday, October 27, and his remarks were reported by Kyiv Post and New Voice of Ukraine, citing Interfax-Ukraine. The president said the idea of demilitarized zones had already appeared in the American „28-point plan” and later returned in various documents.
What exactly was proposed
Regarding Donbas, a proposal reportedly called for a buffer or demilitarized zone on both sides of the line of contact. „As a compromise, we were ready to discuss this,” Zelensky said, as quoted by Censor.net.
The second proposal concerned the Kinburn Spit in Mykolaiv Oblast: according to Zelensky, the Americans wanted to demilitarize part of it, which could remain under Ukrainian control. Russian forces seized the spit in March 2022. According to NV, in June 2026 Ukrainian soldiers raised a flag there, but the navy assessed that it was still too early to speak of liberating the area.
American ideas also included the future of the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and land swaps.
„For now, we are not moving forward”
The president said that when the „diesel deal” topic emerged, the teams discussed all issues, and the Americans again returned to demilitarized zones. He said he saw this in documents at his disposal. „For now, we are not moving forward on this issue,” he added.
Zelensky stressed that only the leaders of Ukraine and Russia can discuss territories, not negotiating teams exchanging draft documents. According to the Glavnoe in Ukraine portal, he also announced a new round of talks between Ukraine, the US and Russia in November; this information is secondhand.
Background: earlier ideas for Donbas
This is not the first such concept. In December 2025, Zelensky said the US was considering a „free economic zone” in part of Donbas, from which Ukrainian troops would withdraw. Russia called this area a demilitarized zone. Zelensky asked at the time why the other side should not withdraw the same distance, and noted it was unclear who would govern such territory (Al Jazeera). Kyiv rejects handing all of Donbas to Russia and does not recognize occupied areas as Russian.
What it means
For readers in Poland, this is a sign that peace talks remain stuck on the territorial question, so no quick ceasefire is visible. As of publication, we have not found official confirmation or a comment from the White House on this matter. The details presented come from the Ukrainian side.
