Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has dismissed proposals for a buffer zone between Ukrainian and Russian forces as part of a potential peace deal, saying such measures do not reflect the realities of modern warfare.
“Only those who do not understand the technological state of today’s war propose a buffer zone,” Zelensky told reporters on Friday.
His remarks followed reports that European leaders were considering a 40km (25-mile) strip of land to separate the two sides under a ceasefire or longer-term agreement. However, Zelensky argued that advances in drone warfare had already created what he described as a “dead zone” along the front lines.
“Today, our heavy weapons are located at a distance of more than 10km from each other, because everything is hit by drones,” he explained. “This buffer – I call it a ‘dead zone’, some call it a ‘grey zone’ – it already exists.”
The Ukrainian leader also rejected the idea that any deal could require Ukraine to cede territory. “If Russia wants to have a greater distance from us, they can retreat deep into the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine,” he said, stressing that Moscow was not ready for diplomacy and instead seeking to prolong the conflict.
The debate over a buffer zone comes as efforts to negotiate peace show signs of stalling. A recent high-level meeting involving US President Donald Trump, Zelensky and European leaders had raised expectations of a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. But those hopes have since faded, with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz saying there would “obviously not” be a meeting as Putin appeared unwilling to engage.
The setbacks were compounded by a massive Russian aerial assault on Kyiv on Thursday, in which 629 missiles and drones were launched, killing 23 people. Some projectiles landed near the European Union’s offices in central Kyiv, drawing strong condemnation from European leaders.
After talks in Toulon, Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to ramp up pressure on Moscow. Macron warned that if Putin failed to respond to a Monday deadline for talks, “it will show again that President Putin has played President Trump.” Merz suggested the war could drag on for “many more months.”
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas also condemned the latest attacks as “a deliberate escalation” and confirmed that European defence ministers had agreed on the need for “robust and credible” security guarantees for Ukraine.
Zelensky’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, meanwhile, held discussions in New York with Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Vice President JD Vance. Yermak said that while Kyiv welcomed Washington’s peace initiatives, “unfortunately, each of them is being stalled by Russia.”
Russia, however, has pushed back against Western-led proposals. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that any security guarantees must account for Moscow’s interests, dismissing the latest ideas as “one-sided” and aimed at containing Russia.
As the war stretches past its 40th month, Zelensky’s rejection of the buffer zone underscores Ukraine’s insistence that any peace framework must reflect the realities on the battlefield—and not come at the expense of its sovereignty.
Melissa Enoch
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