Zelensky rules out ceding territory in ‘victory plan’ dismissed by Kremlin

In this handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on October 16, 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses members of the Ukrainian parliament in Kyiv.

"Russia must lose the war against Ukraine," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told MPs on Wednesday as he laid out a five-point "Victory Plan". In it, he ruled out ceding any Ukrainian territory to Russia and insisted on his number-one priority of NATO integration. The Kremlin quickly dismissed the plan, saying Kyiv should "sober up".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday unveiled his long-awaited Victory Plan to end Russia's invasion, rejecting any territorial concessions and urging ramped-up Western backing, including an invitation to join NATO.

After pushing back Russian troops at the start of the invasion in February 2022, Kyiv is now facing mounting pressure to find an exit strategy as its troops suffer battlefield losses and Moscow intensifies its strikes on infrastructure.

Russia has seized around a fifth of Ukraine's territory since the invasion began, reducing towns and cities to rubble and killing thousands of civilians.

But in his address to lawmakers in Kyiv on Wednesday, the 46-year-old leader ruled out the possibility that Ukraine could cede some territory to secure peace and also dismissed any pause in the conflict.

The number one priority in the five-part so-called Victory Plan, the Ukrainian leader said, was closer integration with the US-led NATO defence alliance.


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