Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday that he would accept freezing the war with Russia along the current front line as a first step toward a ceasefire and peace talks, France 24 reported, carrying his remarks in an interview on Fox News' "Fox & Friends" programme. Asked whether he would accept a peace deal that freezes everything as it stands — in the presenter's framing, with Ukraine still holding 75% or more of its country — Zelenskyy replied: "Yes, right now we have to freeze, and I think this is (the) real way to end this war. We call it ceasefire... freeze and stop."

Zelenskyy said a freeze was "the minimum of what we need from Russia today", after which Kyiv would go to the US president and to European partners and ask for security guarantees, Fox News reported. He also said about 9.5 million Ukrainians had lost their homes or were living abroad, and that Ukraine needed them to come back "just to live and to build their country", according to Fox News' account of the interview. His remarks do not amount to recognising Russian sovereignty over occupied territory: he presented a freeze of positions as a way to stop the killing first, with the terms of any settlement still to be negotiated.

Asked whether Ukraine would give up the Donbas region to make peace, Zelenskyy said that was "not fair", ANI reported. He asserted that Russia was not winning on the battlefield, saying: "In 2026, they didn't have success. They are not winning on the battlefield." Moscow has repeatedly dismissed ceasefire proposals, arguing that a pause would give Ukraine time to rearm, France 24 noted — a claim presented here as Russia's stated position. The interview came as US special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg for talks on ending the war, a day after meeting Zelenskyy in Oslo. Sources: France 24 report carried by The Voice (Oct 21, 2026); Fox News interview reported by Internews (Oct 21, 2026); ANI report carried by LatestLY (Oct 21, 2026).