'This is a very dangerous moment' — Zelensky warns against US withdrawal from peace effort

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Ukraine does not want the U.S. to withdraw from peace talks on ending Russia's full-scale invasion, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 22 during a press conference.

Zelensky's statement comes as Washington has announced it is ready to withdraw from the talks if Ukraine and Russia do not conclude a peace deal soon.

"This is a very dangerous moment. I don't think it sends a very good signal if the U.S. pulls out. We really hope that President (Donald) Trump will support Ukraine and put pressure on Russia," Zelensky said.

Zelensky also stressed that Ukraine is an ally of the U.S., while Russia is an enemy.

Earlier, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the U.S. will cease its attempts to negotiate a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia in the following days if there is no signal that an agreement is reachable.

Rubio added that Trump is interested in reaching a deal but has other priorities as well.

The final version of Trump's peace plan, which he wants Russia and Ukraine to sign off on, requires significant concessions from the latter.

According to the peace proposal, the United States would de jure recognize Russia's control over occupied Crimea and de facto accept Russia's partial occupation of Ukrainian territories in Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

Kyiv must also give up its aspirations to join NATO.

Zelensky has already ruled out recognizing Crimea as Russian territory, after which U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff moved to skip the London meeting on April 23.

The expected ministerial summit was then suspended, with the London meeting downgraded to a lower level.