It was not clear if the Ukrainian leader was serious or if he was just reacting to attacks against him from Washington and Moscow. He also pushed back against a minerals deal proposed by the United States.
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said on Sunday that he was willing to step down if it meant peace in Ukraine. His remark came days after President Trump questioned his legitimacy and called him a “dictator without elections,” echoing a Kremlin talking point.
At the same time, Mr. Zelensky continued to push back against Mr. Trump’s insistence that he sign a minerals deal that Ukraine says is unpalatable. And he announced a meeting on Monday of over 30 countries in person or online as a kind of coalition of support for Ukraine’s war effort.
It was not immediately clear whether Mr. Zelensky had seriously considered the option of stepping down or was merely responding to the latest jabs from Washington and Moscow. He added that he could trade his departure for Ukraine’s entry into NATO — a highly unlikely scenario given Mr. Trump’s opposition to allowing Ukraine into the military alliance.
“If peace for Ukraine requires me to step down, I’m ready,” Mr. Zelensky said during a news conference on Sunday, on the eve of the third anniversary of the war. “Another scenario — I could trade my position for NATO membership, if that’s what it takes.”
For now, Mr. Zelensky said, Ukraine and the United States remain locked in negotiations over a deal to trade Ukraine’s minerals and other natural resources for American aid. Mr. Zelensky said he was still not ready to sign the United States’ latest proposal, which would require Ukraine to pay the United States $500 billion using revenues from its natural resources.
“I am not signing something that 10 generations of Ukrainians will have to repay,” Mr. Zelensky said, noting that negotiations would continue.