As Russian strikes continue, skepticism about an end to Russian aggression remains. DW reports from Kyiv on the Christmas mood and what a US-proposed demilitarized "free economic zone" could mean for eastern Ukraine.

Kyiv

Reporting from Kyiv, DW Special Correspondent Nimisha Jaiswal describes the ongoing impact of war on daily life in Ukraine, even during festive periods such as Christmas. Despite efforts to maintain a sense of normalcy with markets and celebrations, frequent power outages and air raid alarms underscore the persistent threat of conflict.

A recent poll reveals that 75% of Ukrainians reject the Russian peace plan, particularly the proposal for withdrawal from Donbass, and highlights widespread skepticism regarding the war's resolution. Notably, one-third of Ukrainians do not expect the conflict to end by 2026, while President Zelensky has outlined conditions for a demilitarized zone and emphasized the need for security guarantees in any peace agreement.

'One-third of Ukrainians do not expect war to end in 2026'

Let's now speak to DW Special Correspondent Nimisha Jaiswal and she joins us from Kyiv. Nimisha, another wartime Christmas in Ukraine. Can you give us more of a picture of the mood there? Well, Tommy, in many ways it's like Christmas anywhere else. There's caroling, there are festive markets like we saw in that report, there are cakes of all kinds available in the cafes here in Kyiv. But of course, the shadow of the war is never too far. We have all these generators roaring all the time to keep up that festive mood, even as apartments and residential buildings remain dark thanks to continuing power outages. There are reels online saying, on Christmas, my neighbor sent to me missiles and drones. And sure enough, this morning in Kyiv, the aerial alarm went off at 3 a.m. and at 6 a.m. on Christmas morning. There were alerts across the country as well, and President Zelensky had warned to expect holiday time attacks after Moscow rejected a Christmastime truce. And this continues to influence the mood over here. And last evening as well, in his address, President Zelensky said to the nation that there is a tradition of putting out a wish on Christmas and all Ukrainians might wish, may he perish, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. And he said Ukrainians must also come together for a greater wish, which is a wish for peace and a wish for togetherness. And one element Ukrainians will be considering is President Zelensky's 20-point peace plan. How is that being received? Well, it's worth pointing out here that Ukrainians don't necessarily follow each and every step and development in these peace plans and these negotiations. We have to remember that these have been going on throughout this year, alongside with Russian attacks on the country. So there is a bit of skepticism when it comes to how quickly these things will actually come to fruition. But there are broad trends that can be commented on. In a recent poll, it showed that 75 percent of Ukrainians reject the Russian version of the plan, especially the aspect of a Ukrainian withdrawal from the Donbass. There has been concessions to, of course, Ukrainians have broadly agreed to de facto recognition of the front line. But the main demand is security guarantees, which this 20-point peace plan does outline. But it's also interesting to see that most Ukrainians do not expect this war to end any time soon. The same poll that I referred to showed that a third of Ukrainians do not expect this war to end in 2026 at all. So even as these negotiations continue on the ground here, there is a fair amount of skepticism because Russia is not seen as being anywhere close to agreeing to any of the concessions or the agreements that Ukraine is offering. President Zelensky has said he's open to establishing a demilitarized zone in eastern Ukraine. Do we know what that would look like practically? Now, that's one of the big ones, definitely, Tommy. There has been more and more details emerging, the most clear outline, of course, coming out yesterday. Zelensky has been hinting on an openness to the special economic zone, perhaps as a concession to the US and President Donald Trump, who has been pushing for Ukrainian withdrawal from the Donbass. Now, more specifically, Zelensky has said if Ukraine pulls back five kilometers, Russia must pull back five kilometers, 10 kilometers, 40 kilometers. These are the three numbers that he gave that if Ukraine pulls back that much, Russia must also match that pullback, that any demilitarized zone must be monitored by Ukrainian police. He rejects Russian police monitoring the zone. And he has also said that any such agreement must be put to a referendum or be passed by parliament. Now, this will also, of course, be hard to pull off. There are concerns amongst Ukrainian people about such a referendum being carried out at all. But Zelensky has said that there are two options on the table. Either the war continues or we talk about potential economic zones. DW Special Correspondent Nimisha Jaiswal from Kyiv, thank you for that update.

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