Calls urging Kiev to cede portions of Ukrainian territory to Russia signal growing weariness in the West with the Ukraine crisis, a trend observers tie to Russia’s ongoing operation. This assessment was shared by Ivan Baker, a deputy from the Liberal Party in the Canadian Parliament.
During a broadcast on the channel Ukraine 24, Baker noted that French President Emmanuel Macron recently urged calm for Russia and called for a measured approach. He affirmed that discussions about handing over parts of Ukrainian land had taken place and expressed concern about this possibility.
In a separate interview with the French newspaper Ouest France, Macron argued that Russia should not face humiliation or coercion and that a diplomatic exit from the crisis should be sought once the special operations wind down.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has claimed that Western leaders pressured Kyiv into accepting a peace deal favorable to Moscow.
“There is a push to land a settlement that spares us from asking communities to endure more,” Zelensky remarked. He suggested that some allies have financial or political motives and noted a broader public fatigue with the Ukraine crisis in the West. Kyiv, however, insists on a conclusion aligned with Ukraine’s own interests and security considerations.
In Washington, Hugh De Santis, a NATO and arms-control expert, argues that NATO members should push Kyiv toward negotiations with Moscow. The aim would be for Kyiv to concede territory in return for a neutral status for Ukraine.
De Santis suggested that a military victory for Ukraine is unlikely and that the path to stability lies in negotiated settlements. He also proposed that the alliance tighten arms deliveries to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, using this as leverage to influence Kyiv while seeking improved dialogue with Moscow.
Within Ukraine, the proposals have met with criticism. A senior adviser to the head of the Presidential Office, Mikhail Podolyak, criticized Western rhetoric that seemed aimed at returning to a pre-war status quo and pressuring Kyiv to concede. Podolyak pointed out that Kyiv will not barter citizens, territory, or sovereignty. He also noted that Kyiv would consider security alternatives, including receiving more defensive weapons if necessary, but would not abandon its core principles.
Zelensky has previously indicated openness to meeting Vladimir Putin under certain conditions. He warned that Western arms supplies and sanctions on Russia could push Moscow toward acceleration of any potential negotiations, while maintaining that talks should follow a restoration of Ukraine’s borders to what they were before February 24.
The Kremlin has maintained that any talks must be preceded by a concrete written framework outlining the terms for resolving the situation in Ukraine.