The Trump administration is putting the squeeze on Ukraine, and it's not subtle. After years of battlefield stalemate, Washington wants a deal done fast—like, by Thanksgiving fast—and the terms look awfully friendly to Moscow.

The Deal Ukraine Doesn't Want

According to The Guardian, U.S. officials have handed Kyiv a 28-point framework that checks off several items from Russia's wishlist. Ukraine would need to give up more territory, cap the size of its military, and kiss NATO membership goodbye. Ukrainian and European officials are characterizing this as something dangerously close to surrender.

The pressure campaign includes a not-so-veiled threat: sign this, or watch your intelligence access and weapons shipments dry up. A senior U.S. military delegation met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Thursday to deliver the message personally, pushing what they called an "aggressive timeline" for getting signatures on paper.

Zelenskyy's Impossible Choice

Standing outside his office, Zelenskyy delivered a somber assessment. Ukraine is facing "one of the heaviest moments" since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, he said. The choice now is brutal: accept terms that would strip the country of "freedom, dignity and justice," or lose a partner that seems determined to end this conflict on whatever terms it can get.

Zelenskyy pointed out the obvious problem with trusting Moscow: "someone who has already attacked us twice." He pledged not to violate Ukraine's constitution or betray national interests. "We did not betray Ukraine then [in 2022], and we will not do so now," he said.

Trump has called Thursday—Thanksgiving—an "acceptable" deadline for Ukraine to sign, the report noted.

This comes after Zelenskyy pushed the U.S. in October to expand sanctions on Russian oil beyond just two companies to the entire industry. Those peace talks with Moscow went nowhere, which Trump described as "very disappointing."