Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proposed to give up his position in exchange for peace and membership in NATO, as his country faces the largest Russian drone attack since the war began. In a news conference in Kyiv on Sunday, Zelenskyy made the offer as tensions rise between his government and the new US government led by President Donald Trump. Zelenskyy stated that he is ready to leave his post if it means peace for Ukraine and NATO membership. However, Trump has repeatedly attacked Zelenskyy and today called him a “dictator” with little support from Ukrainians. The US is making its support for Ukraine conditional on a deal for Ukraine’s rare earth minerals, with Washington initially demanding 50 percent ownership. Ukraine has indicated a deal could be negotiated, but Zelenskyy rejected Trump’s assertion that his country owes $500 billion to the US. A Trump envoy said that Zelenskyy had initially wavered in his commitment to the US accessing Ukrainian minerals but was no longer wavering. Meanwhile, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that Russian and American teams were planning to meet this week to discuss improving relations. Ukraine is not involved in the Russia-US talks, and Zelenskyy emphasized that an agreement on Ukraine reached without Ukrainians at the table is not feasible. Zelenskyy also announced that Russia had carried out the largest drone assault on Ukraine since the war began, launching 267 drones against his country overnight. He appealed to Europe and the US to stand with Ukraine. Yuriy Ignat, an air force spokesperson, said that 138 of the drones were intercepted by air defenses and 119 were lost without causing damage. The drone attack was a record for a single attack since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russian missile strikes continue to target different regions, including Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv. Al Jazeera’s Imran Khan reported from Kyiv that Ukrainians refer to the Russian drone strikes as “state-sponsored terrorism,” and it is frightening for civilians to come under those attacks. Since the war began, Ukraine has sought to disrupt Russian logistics to prevent daily strikes, even attacking military bases and industrial sites inside Russia.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/23/ukraines-zelenskyy-offers-to-leave-office-in-exchange-for-peace-nato?traffic_source=rss