Zelenskyy says he won't sign weak deal that will only prolong war

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in his New Year address to the nation, said that Ukraine wanted the war to end, but not at any cost, adding he would not sign a "weak" peace agreement that would only prolong the war.

Seated in his office, with a festive tree in the background, Zelenskyy said Ukrainians were exhausted from nearly four years of war. But they were not prepared to give up.

"What does Ukraine want? Peace? Yes. At any cost? No. We want an end to the war but not the end of Ukraine," Zelenskyy, wearing a dark green embroidered Ukrainian shirt, said in the 21-minute address issued just before midnight.

"Are we tired? Very. Does this mean we are ready to surrender? Anyone who thinks so is deeply mistaken."

Zelenskyy said any signature "placed on weak agreements only fuel the war."

"My signature will be placed on a strong agreement. And that is exactly what every meeting, every phone call, every decision is about now," he said. "To secure a strong peace for everyone, not for a day, a week or two months, but peace for years."

Zelenskyy said weeks of U.S.-led diplomacy, including his talks last weekend with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida, had produced a peace deal that was nearly ready.

"A peace agreement is 90% ready, 10% remains," he said. "That 10% contains everything, it is the 10% that will determine the fate of peace, the fate of Ukraine and Europe and how people will live."

The main stumbling block to completing a deal is the issue of who will control what parts of Ukraine's territory.

Russia holds about 19% of Ukraine's territory in the south and east, but Russian President Vladimir Putin wants Ukraine to withdraw from parts of the eastern Donbas region that Moscow's forces have failed to capture.

Kyiv wants the map frozen at the current battle lines, and Zelenskyy dismissed as "deception" Russian demands for a complete withdrawal from Donbas.

• Putin: Russia to seize Donbas if Ukraine doesn’t withdraw
• Trump says Ukraine peace talks ‘very close’ after Florida meeting with Zelenskyy

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