Volodymyr Zelensky rejected suggestions for buffer zone to terminate the fight

Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski rejected proposals for a buffer zone between the Ukrainian and Russian forces as part of a peaceful deal, claiming that it did not reflect the realities of the modern war.

“Only those who do not understand the technological condition of today’s war offer a buffer zone,” he told reporters on Friday.

His comments followed a report assumed that European leaders were considering a buffer zone by 40 km (25 miles) as part of the truce or longer-term agreement.

The war in Ukraine has become a conflict led by drone technology, and Zelenski suggested that there is a buffer zone that has already existed due to the threat of drone strikes near the front line.

Buffer zones can create demilitarized areas between hostile countries, such as North and South Korea, and physical borders such as the Iron Curtain – which divide the Soviet Union and the West after World War II.

According to to a Politico ReportEuropean diplomats have said the proposal among military and civil servants is for a strip of land in Ukraine to be blocked between the two forces.

But Zelenski said there was already an area on both sides of the front line, where heavy artillery was not able to work due to the risk of drone fire.

“Today, our heavy weapons are located more than 10 km apart because everything is affected by drones,” he said.

“This buffer – I call it a” dead zone “, some call it the” gray zone ” – it already exists.”

Any such transaction can also mean Ukraine to give up some territory in the area that Zelenski also rejected: “If Russia wants to have a longer distance than us, they can withdraw deeply in the temporary territories of Ukraine.”

He added that Russia is not ready for diplomacy, but is looking for ways to delay the end of the war.

A diplomatic offensive, led by the United States, to end the full -scale war of Russia, which has now lasted more than 40 months, seems to lose momentum.

High -bet meeting Last week between US President Donald TrumpZelenski and European leaders hoped for a possible summit between the Ukrainian leader and Russian Vladimir Putin.

But these hopes seem increasingly distant and the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that “obviously not” is not a meeting and it seems that Putin “does not want to” participate.

Russia launched 629 drones and rockets in Kiev in the early hours of Thursday, killing 23 people, in one of the largest air attacks of the war so far, which has caused outrage from European leaders. Two rockets landed near the EU offices in Central Kyiv.

Following talks in the French city of Toulon, Mertz and France, Emmanuel Macron said they would increase pressure on Russia because of Putin showed little interest in ending the war.

Macron said that if Putin did not follow a deadline on Monday to agree with the negotiations, “this will show that President Putin played President Trump.”

Merz suggested that the war could continue “many more months”.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kalas has condemned “Russia’s continuing attacks against civilian and civil infrastructure, which are deliberate escalation and undermine efforts to peace.”

On Friday, the Headquarters of Zelenski Andriai Jermak discussed the US peace with Trump’s special envoy Steve Vikof, as well as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance.

Jermak said after his meeting in New York that while Ukraine welcomed all the peace initiatives on display by the United States, “unfortunately, each of them is stopped by Russia.”

European leaders are working on providing Ukraine’s security guarantees if a deal can be achieved with Russia.

Kaja Kalas said EU Defense Ministers agreed on Friday that they would have to be “healthy and credible”, and Zelenski said that the negotiations would continue next week of NATO -like commitments that would ensure the protection of Ukraine.

However, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova has identified the latest Western proposals as “one-sided” and aimed at contents of Russia.

“Security guarantees must be based on a common understanding that takes into account the interests of Russia’s security,” she said.