Under pressure to surrender land to Russia, Zelenskyy pitches a referendum

For nearly four years, the city of Kramatorsk in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk has been a stronghold — a key logistics hub for the military, and for the population, a literal and symbolic fortress standing firm against a Russian push that continues to edge closer from the south and the east. 

But under the Trump administration’s latest vision for peace, Ukraine would be forced to withdraw its troops from the city and the rest of the areas of Donetsk it still controls. Under the supposed compromise, the area would be turned into a special economic zone.

“It’s just absurd,” said Maksym Lysenko, an entrepreneur from Ukraine's now-decimated city of Pokrovsk, who opened a store in Kramatorsk in the summer selling patriotic attire. 

“People were dying, shedding their blood, and then what, just give up the territory?”

When Zelenskyy was asked last week about what kind of painful concessions Kyiv would be willing to have peace, he floated the idea of a referendum, saying it should be up to Ukrainians to decide. 

Lysenko didn’t see the suggestion as a way to gauge public appetite for a deal, but viewed it as an attempt by Zelenskyy to placate U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly lashed out at him, calling him disrespectful and ungrateful. 

“[Zelenskyy] simply said it not to annoy the U.S. president again," said Lysenko. “He said, ‘OK you want a referendum; well, then, let’s have a referendum.'"

With Russian positions now less than 20 kilometres away from Kramatorsk's boundaries, and with the city constantly under threat of drones and missiles, some of the tens of thousands of residents remaining are making the difficult decision to leave, even as the future of this city remains at the centre of the ongoing negotiations. 

Meanwhile, Trump, hasty to make a deal, accused Zelenskyy of clinging to power and questioned how long Ukraine can remain a democracy if it doesn't hold an election. In response, the Ukrainian president said the country was ready for an electoral vote, providing the U.S. and other allies provided security.

That suggestion is seen as again a way to try and politely push back against U.S. pressure to cede territory to Russia, turning any decision ultimately over to the Ukrainian public, who are very much against the idea.

Surveys have shown that while a majority of Ukrainians are in favour of a ceasefire agreement that would freeze the war along the front lines, three-quarters would not support a deal that would make major concessions. That includes withdrawing Ukrainian troops from the Donbas region.

“People are tired; people want peace. People are open to concessions, but not to surrender,” said Anton Hrushetskyi, executive director of the Kyiv International Institute for Sociology. 

His organization regularly polls the public by phone throughout Ukrainian territory still controlled by Kyiv. The most recent survey was conducted between Nov. 26 and Dec. 13 and included 547 respondents. 

Hrushetskyi told CBC News in an interview by Zoom that it has been difficult to formulate questions to gauge public support around a prospective peace deal, because it's unclear what's actually on the table.