U.S. offers Ukraine 15-year security guarantee as part of peace plan : NPR

KYIV, Ukraine — The United States is offering 15 years of security guarantees to Ukraine as part of a proposed peace plan, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday, although he said he would prefer an American commitment of up to 50 years to deter Russia from further attempts to seize its neighbor's lands by force.

US President Donald Trump hosted Zelensky at his Florida resort on Sunday and insisted Ukraine and Russia were “closer than ever before” to a peace settlement.

But negotiators are still seeking a breakthrough on key issues, including whose forces are leaving Ukraine and the fate of the Russian-occupied Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in Ukraine, one of the world's 10 largest. Trump noted that the months-long US-led negotiations could still fail.

“In reality, this war will not end without security guarantees,” Zelensky told reporters in voice messages, answering questions sent via WhatsApp chat.

Ukraine has been at war with Russia since 2014, when it illegally annexed Crimea and Moscow-backed separatists took up arms in the Donbass, a vital industrial region in eastern Ukraine.

Details of the security guarantees have not been made public, but Zelensky said on Monday they include how the peace deal will be monitored as well as the “presence” of partners. He did not specify, but Russia stated that it would not accept the deployment of NATO troops in Ukraine.

Trump and Putin discussed peace efforts by phone

Trump had a “positive conversation” with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday about the war, White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said in a post on X. The two leaders also spoke shortly before Trump's talks with Zelensky on Sunday, as the US president tries to steer the countries towards a settlement.

Later speaking to reporters, the US president also described the call as “a very good conversation” and said that “as you can imagine, we have some very pressing issues” in talks to end the war.

“If we solve them, you will have peace,” he added.

Putin's foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said Trump was pushing Ukraine to reach a comprehensive peace agreement rather than demanding a temporary respite for its military through a ceasefire. Putin insisted on a full resolution of the conflict before concluding a truce.

On Monday, Putin told Trump that Ukraine attempted to attack the Russian leader's residence in northwestern Russia with long-range drones almost immediately after Trump's talks with Zelensky on Sunday.

The attack “will definitely not go without a serious response,” Ushakov said, adding that Moscow would now reconsider its negotiating position.

Zelensky rejected Russia's accusations of the attack, calling it an attempt to manipulate the peace process. He said it was “another lie” and happened because Moscow was nervous about progress in peace efforts.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Ukraine launched an attack on Putin's residence in the Novgorod region on the night of Sunday to Monday, using 91 long-range drones.

“I don't like it. This is not good,” Trump said of the alleged attack on Putin’s home, confirming that the Russian leader told him about it during their call on Monday morning.

Russia says its troops are advancing

Indications are that negotiations could reach a climax in January, ahead of the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Putin on Monday said Russian troops were advancing in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region and were also continuing their offensive in the southern Zaporozhye region.

Putin has sought to portray himself as negotiating from a position of strength as Ukrainian forces struggle to hold off a large Russian army.

At a meeting with senior military officials, he stressed the need to create military buffer zones along the border with Russia. “This is a very important task because it ensures the security of Russia’s border regions,” Putin said.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Kyiv's allies would meet in Paris in early January to “finalize the specific contribution of each country” to security guarantees.

According to Zelensky, Trump said he would consider extending American security guarantees for Ukraine beyond 15 years. The guarantees would be approved by the US Congress, as well as the parliaments of other countries involved in overseeing any settlement, he said.

Zelensky said he wants the mooted 20-point peace plan to be approved by Ukrainians in a popular referendum.

However, a vote requires a ceasefire of at least 60 days, and Moscow has shown no willingness to truce without a full settlement.

Ukrainians doubt Putin's sincerity

On the snowy streets of Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, people were skeptical about the chances for peace.

One military veteran, who uses the call sign “Sensei”, in accordance with Ukrainian army rules, said Putin's track record in power shows he cannot be trusted. Sensei joined the army in 2022 and was wounded in the same year during the battle for the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. Now, according to him, almost no one from his company is left alive.

“But all these sacrifices are not in vain, because we need to prove… that we exist, that we are, that we have the right to our existence, to our territory, to our culture, to our language,” the 65-year-old veteran told The Associated Press.

Denis Shpilovy, a 20-year-old student who was home for the holidays, said Trump's willingness to accept Putin's arguments put Zelensky in a difficult situation.

“But I'm grateful for some progress. They are talking and maybe someday there will be hope,” he said.

Ukrainian political scientist Oleg Sahakyan called it a good sign that Zelensky is managing to build relations with Trump, although he noted that “nothing has been accepted yet, nothing has been signed yet.”

“I don't see these negotiations bringing us closer to real peace, because they are based on equality between aggressor and victim, they are based on a complete disregard for international law and… disregard for European security,” he said.