Zelenskyy says US floated NATO membership for Donbas withdrawal

Military expert Gustav Gressel sees formidable obstacles, including unanimous alliance approval and Russia's opposition, rather than an agreed path to peace.

Channel: ZDFheute Nachrichten ·

GermanyStory of November 15, 2026Trari Newsroom

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Selenskyj: USA haben Ukraine Mitgliedschaft in NATO für Donbass in Aussicht gestellt | ZDFheute live

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0:00Parente introduces Zelenskyy's account of US discussions linking a Donbas withdrawal to possible NATO membership.
0:36Gressel considers the security logic conceivable but stresses that NATO admission requires unanimous approval.
3:06Gressel says Russia's demands over European security arrangements are blocking agreement.
5:14He doubts Putin would accept Ukrainian NATO membership while still believing military victory is possible.
8:02War-weary Ukraine needs reliable guarantees, Gressel argues, not vague promises.
10:16Gressel questions the US administration's commitment and criticizes its business-style negotiating approach.

Would Ukraine withdraw from the Donbas in exchange for NATO membership? According to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, US representatives raised that possibility following peace talks in Abu Dhabi involving Ukraine, Russia and the United States.

Germany's public broadcaster Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) examines the reported proposal on its ZDFheute Nachrichten channel, with host Barbara Parente interviewing military expert Gustav Gressel. The discussion describes an idea under consideration, not an agreed offer that Washington could deliver alone.

The Donbas encompasses the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine. In its account, the broadcaster says Zelenskyy rejects surrendering territory but would be prepared to let Ukrainians vote on the region's status if comprehensive security guarantees were available.

Gressel argues that the underlying exchange could be conceivable for Ukraine if it provided protection against another attack. But NATO admission requires unanimous approval from existing members, making implementation extremely difficult. The alliance's collective-defense commitment helps explain why membership would carry more weight than a general promise of support.

Russia presents another obstacle. Gressel says Moscow's demands concerning Europe's security arrangements go further than its prewar demands and are blocking agreement. Asked whether Vladimir Putin might accept Ukrainian NATO membership, he answers that the Russian president still believes he can win the war and overestimates his forces' territorial progress.

Later, Gressel draws a distinction between war weariness and willingness to accept uncertain terms. Ukraine needs dependable guarantees, he argues, rather than vague assurances. He questions whether President Donald Trump's administration is seriously committed to the proposal or merely entertaining a passing idea.

His closing criticism concerns the business-style negotiating approach he associates with Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff: before Ukraine makes any irreversible concession, Gressel argues, it needs to establish whether the promised protection would actually materialize.

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