KYIV - President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Nov 21 that Ukraine faced losing its dignity and freedom or Washington’s support over

which endorses key Russian demands and which Donald Trump said Kyiv should agree to by Nov 27.

The US president told Fox News Radio he believed Nov 27 was an appropriate deadline for Kyiv to accept the plan, confirming what two sources had told Reuters.

In a solemn address to the nation which he delivered in the street outside his office, a location he uses only rarely for major addresses, Mr Zelensky had earlier on Nov 21 appealed to Ukrainians for unity and said he would never betray Ukraine.

‘A very difficult choice’

“Now is one of the most difficult moments of our history. Now, the pressure on Ukraine is one of the heaviest. Now, Ukraine can face a very difficult choice – either losing dignity or risk losing a major partner,” he said.

“I will fight 24/7 to ensure that at least two points in the plan are not overlooked – the dignity and freedom of Ukrainians,” Mr Zelensky said.

Washington has

which calls for Ukraine to cede territory, accept limits to its military and renounce ambitions to join Nato.

The United States

for Ukraine if it does not accept the deal, the two sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity to disclose the contents of private meetings.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, a senior US official later said it was not accurate to say the US threatened to withhold intelligence.

A US military delegation met Mr Zelensky in Kyiv on Nov 20. The US ambassador and the army public affairs chief travelling with the delegation described the meeting as a success and said Washington sought an “aggressive timeline” for the US and Ukraine to sign a document.

‘A real and dignified peace’

Mr Zelensky held a phone call on Nov 21 with the leaders of allies Britain, Germany and France, and later spoke to US Vice-President J.D. Vance. He said he had agreed with Mr Vance to work at adviser level “to find a workable path to peace”.

Three sources later told Reuters that Ukraine was working on a counter-proposal to the 28-point plan with Britain, France and Germany.

The Europeans have not been consulted on the US plan and

Russian President Vladimir Putin said late on Nov 21 that the US plan could be the basis of a final resolution of the nearly four-year-old conflict. He has previously refused to budge on Russia’s key territorial and security demands. He said neither the US nor its European allies understood the reality of Russian advances in Ukraine.

In earlier remarks, Mr Zelensky appeared careful not to reject the US plan or to offend the Americans.

“We value the efforts of the United States, President Trump, and his team aimed at ending this war. We are working on the document prepared by the American side. This must be a plan that ensures a real and dignified peace,” he said.

But the plan’s call for terms that Kyiv has rejected in the past as capitulation could test the stability of Ukrainian society after nearly four years of relentless warfare.

“Russia gets everything it wants and Ukraine gets not very much. If Zelensky accepts this I anticipate huge political, social and economic instability in Ukraine,” said Mr Tim Ash, of Britain’s Chatham House think-tank.

‘A very dangerous moment’

European leaders expressed their strong support for Kyiv.

“We all want this war to end, but how it ends matters. Russia has no legal right whatsoever to any concessions from the country it invaded,” said EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. “This is a very dangerous moment for all.”

US officials, defending their plan, have said it was drafted after consultations with Mr Rustem Umerov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, a close Zelensky ally who served as defence minister until July.

Mr Umerov “agreed to the majority of the plan, after making several modifications, and presented it to President Zelensky,” a senior US official said on Nov 21.

Mr Umerov denied agreeing to any of the plan’s terms, and said he had played only a technical role organising talks: “This is not within my authority, and does not correspond to the procedure,” he wrote on Telegram.

The Kremlin said Russia had not received anything official from the US about a peace plan. Kyiv should make a “responsible decision”, and do it now, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Russia’s demands spelled out, Kyiv’s left vague

The plan, a copy of which was reviewed by Reuters, would require Ukraine to withdraw from territory it still controls in eastern provinces Russia claims to have annexed, while Russia would give up smaller amounts of land it holds in other regions.

Ukraine would be permanently barred from joining the Nato military alliance, and its armed forces would be capped at 600,000 troops. Nato would agree never to station troops there.

Sanctions against Russia would be gradually lifted, Moscow would be invited back into the G-8 group of industrialised countries, and frozen Russian assets would be pooled in an investment fund, with Washington given some of the profits.

One of Ukraine’s main demands, for enforceable guarantees equivalent to the Nato alliance’s mutual defence clause to deter Russia from attacking again, is dealt with in a single line with no details: “Ukraine will receive robust security guarantees”.

Mr Trump has accepted some of Russia’s justifications for its 2022 invasion of its neighbour while also expressing some impatience with Moscow.

In October, he cancelled a proposed summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and imposed sanctions on Russia’s two main oil companies, set to come into full effect on Nov 21, Washington’s deadline for foreign buyers to wind down Russian oil purchases.

Mr Trump said on nov 21 he expected the “powerful” sanctions to have their intended effect on Russia, adding: “Their whole economy is based on oil”.