According to an early iteration of the United States’ 28-point plan to end the war in Ukraine, Kiev would have to give up the entirety of Donbass, which includes the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, for de facto Russian control. This would include those parts of the territory not currently occupied by Russia, which would be designated “demilitarized zones” and would also effectively come under Russian control.
After sharp criticism from Kiev and Europe, the proposals are now being revised and negotiations are underway between US and Ukrainian officials in Florida. The talks come after President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow earlier this week.
Ukraine currently controls about a quarter of the Donetsk region. According to the regional military administration, about 200,000 people still live there despite regular shelling.
maximum withdrawal
Anastasia Machnik, who volunteers as a hotline dispatcher run by the Ukrainian Road of Life aid project, told DW that until now there had not been much discussion about the peace proposal among Donbass residents, but in the past weeks, more and more people have asked to be evacuated from the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.
He said most of the people who contacted the project were families with children or others who needed help, with many of them holding out until the last minute in the hope that the situation would improve. She said life was relatively quiet for them, at least compared to other places on the front. “But they see that their expectations are not being met. Perhaps they too are being influenced by the news.”
Macnyk said that from his conversations with people he felt that most people could not imagine that the Ukrainian government would abandon areas where so many people still lived. “They think that as long as there are enough people, they will not be released. But a certain distrust of the authorities can also be felt.”
Along with Russian occupation, there is also fear of war and winter.
Macknik continued by explaining that most people doubted that Russia would stop fighting, even if there was an agreement and guarantees. But he said the reason for the evacuation was now also linked to the fact that the front line was getting closer, more and more buildings were being destroyed and winter was approaching.
Oleksiy K (name changed), co-founder of an aid organization evacuating people from the Donetsk region, said people in relatively safe parts are leaving their homes out of fear of a Russian occupation.
“Some people are getting ready to leave because they fear that at some point they will be told: ‘You have two days left, and then this territory will fall to Russia,'” he told DW.
But people in areas bordering the Donetsk region, such as Kostiantynivka or Pokrovsk, were leaving mainly because their homes were destroyed and food supplies were lacking, he said – as well as the fact that communication lines were down due to shelling – not because of current news.
“Those who fear Russian occupation have left these areas a long time ago,” he said. “Those who remain are mainly desperate people who don’t know where to go and pensioners who are worried about looting. They will hold out to the end, as long as their homes are safe.”
He also said that there were people without principles who claimed to have “nothing to do” with politics, as well as many conscientious objectors for whom an armistice would mean nothing because they would not be drafted into the army.
Those who have opted to stay include Maxim Lysenko, the founder of a clothing brand, which opened a showroom along with a café in Kramatorsk in June. But given the situation, he told DW he is considering moving his business to Kiev. “We were a little apprehensive when we opened, but we were hopeful that everything would go well.”
But then the front line came rapidly closer. “We are now thinking more about growing rather than expanding,” he said. He said nothing has been decided yet. He said sales have increased slightly again in the past two weeks, after falling sharply when the rail connection to Kramatorsk was disrupted, but have not yet returned to their previous levels.
‘Anything is possible’
According to a poll conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology in late September and early October, 71% of Ukrainians are against leaving Kyiv-controlled areas to Russia. But in the east of the country, only 47% of respondents are against it, while 24% would accept the loss of territory for peace and 29% are still undecided.
Lysenko, who is from Pokrovsk, said the idea of Russia leaving Donbass was “absurd and unimaginable”, but acknowledged it could happen. “Given the realities of the world and the people in power in America, I think anything is possible.”
He said he did not think handing over the entire Donbass region to Russia would lead to peace. He said it would instead enable Russian forces to regroup, bypass Ukrainian fortifications in the Donetsk region and continue their advance. This would be “a defeat for the whole world”.
He added, “We have saved Kyiv, our sovereignty and our independence. But we have lost a lot of territory because of the inaction of the international community.” “Instead of putting pressure on the aggressor, it is being put on the weaker side, and the world stands by and watches this absurdity. It’s like rewarding a murderer just because he is stronger.”
Concession of areas will be ‘surrender’
Kateryna Koval is originally from Druzhkivka near the Frontline, but she currently lives with her family near Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. She also thinks it would be “completely absurd” to cede the entire region to Russia.
“This is not about an empty field, but about human life. How can entire cities be abandoned? And the people left in them?” Not all of them supported Russia, he said, but they held on to their homes because they were unable to move or were afraid of ending up on the streets. “Especially older people who will have no other way to earn a living.”
Accepting the territories would be tantamount to surrender, Kowal said. And he also doubted that Russia would stop in Donbass, but on the contrary, the threat to the Kharkiv and Dnepropetrovsk regions would only increase. But he feared the US would force Ukraine to surrender, and also said it would be hard to sell the population.
He said he has not heard of any internally displaced person who does not want to go home. “Even if their homes have been destroyed. It’s not just about walls, but about emotions. And about the graves of loved ones who will no longer be accessible.”
“If it is Ukraine, and there is peace there, we will go back because it is our home.”
This article was originally written in Ukrainian.