Ukrainian President Zelensky states a peace agreement is 90% complete but warns the final 10% on territory and security guarantees is critical.
KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that a deal to end the war with Russia is “90 percent ready”.
In a New Year’s Eve address, he cautioned that the remaining “10 percent” involves the most critical unresolved issues.
Zelensky warned against rewarding Moscow and said peace could not come at “any cost”.
He emphasised that any final agreement must include strong security guarantees to deter future Russian aggression.
“The peace agreement is 90 percent ready. Ten percent remains. And that is far more than just numbers,” Zelensky said in the address posted on Telegram.
“Those are the 10 percent that will determine the fate of peace, the fate of Ukraine and Europe,” he added.
The key sticking point remains territory, with Russia occupying around 20% of Ukraine and pushing for full control of the eastern Donbas region.
Kyiv has warned that ceding ground would embolden Moscow.
Zelensky’s speech followed a call between US officials, including top envoy Steve Witkoff, and Ukrainian and European security advisers.
The discussions focused on the next steps to end the nearly four-year conflict.
In his own New Year’s address, Russian President Vladimir Putin urged citizens to “believe in victory”.
He told soldiers, whom he called “heroes”, that “We believe in you and our victory.”
The Kremlin stated this week it would “toughen” its negotiating position.
This came after Moscow accused Ukraine of launching drones at a Putin residence in the Novgorod region.
Russia called it a “personal” and “terrorist attack” against Putin.
The US-based Institute for the Study of War said it had not seen evidence to corroborate the Kremlin’s claims about the alleged strike.
