Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested Thursday that Ukrainians would be allowed to vote on whether to hand over the Donbas region that Russia has repeatedly demanded as a way to secure an end to the war.

The region has been a key sticking point for Russia, which has failed to conquer it for more than a decade, with Zelensky previously stating that such a major land concession cannot be made without the will of the Ukrainian people, as per the country’s constitution.

Speaking from Kyiv, Zelensky told reporters that a nation-wide referendum was possible to see if Ukrainians would accept giving up their fortress belt for peace and security guarantees, Bloomberg reported.

“The Russians want the whole of Donbas — we don’t accept that,” Zelensky said. “I believe that the Ukrainian people will answer this question. Whether in the form of elections or a referendum, the Ukrainian people must have a say.”

Ukrainian and western officials have previously expressed concerns that giving up the entire Donbas region, which Moscow occupies the vast majority of, would pave the way for another Russian invasion in the near future.

The Donetsk oblast inside the region has been repeatedly credited for expelling Russia’s army, with Moscow losing hundreds of soldiers a week in its continued attempt to seize the fortress belt.

As Kyiv and Moscow inch toward a cease-fire deal brokered by the US, Zelensky said disagreements persist on whether Donbas would be a “free economic zone,” as pitched by American mediators, or stand as a “demilitarized zone,” which was proposed by Russia.

Zelensky also said the US is working to hammer out security guarantees for Kyiv that would mitigate Russian aggression, with the Ukrainian president noting that he had “constructive” talks with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and US presidential envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

“Security guarantees are among the most critical elements for all subsequent steps. We have already got the negative experience of the Budapest Memorandum,” he wrote on X, referencing the 1994 agreement where the US pledged to protect Ukraine from a Russian invasion after the country gave up its nuclear arsenal.

“Everyone remembers this, as well as the occasions when Russia repeatedly violated all its other commitments. That is why it is essential that this document on security guarantees provides concrete answers to what concerns Ukrainians the most: what actions partners will take if Russia decides to launch its aggression again,” Zelensky added.

The current peace proposal being discussed called for NATO’s Article 5 to be extended to Ukraine, which would treat an attack on Ukraine as an attack on the entire defense bloc, CNN reported.

While it does not include any language on Ukraine’s possible membership to NATO, which Russia said would be a non-starter, the peace proposal does open the door for Ukraine to join the European Union by 2027.

Zelensky also confirmed that Ukraine’s army would be capped at 800,000 under the peace deal, a small decrease from its current 900,000 troops.

The Ukrainian president was also open to a proposal that would see elections held in the country within 60 to 90 days of a cease-fire.

Zelensky, who has remained president under martial law, agreed to such a clause earlier this week after coming under fire again from President Trump over the lack of elections in Ukraine.

Elections in Kyiv were due last year, but the ongoing Russian invasion has prevented the polls from opening, with Trump suggesting Ukraine was losing its grip on democracy.

Zelensky, who won by a landslide 73% in 2019, has previously said he would run for another term if elections are held.

The Ukrainian president said the peace talks would remain ongoing with the next major conference expected in Paris this weekend, which the US has not yet committed to attending.

“[Trump] is sick of meetings just for the sake of the meeting,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday.