WASHINGTON, November 22. /TASS/. The Washington administration believes that Vladimir Zelensky will be forced to agree to the new US plan to settle the conflict in Ukraine due to the corruption scandal in the country, Politico reported.

According to the newspaper, the US believes that "the moment to pressure Ukraine into a peace agreement is at hand, with Vladimir Zelensky particularly weak at home and plagued by a corruption scandal that poses the most direct threat to his leadership." "The Ukrainians will have to accept [the deal] given the weakness of Zelensky’s current position," a source from among high-ranking White House officials said.

The article noted that US President Donald Trump "gave Zelensky until November 24 to sign on [the plan] or risk losing American intelligence and military support." "It was strongly implied to the Ukrainians that the United States expects them to agree to a peace deal," a US official emphasized. "Any changes [to the plan] will be decided by the [US] president himself," he added.

According to a Politico source among European officials, "Americans are talking to Ukraine with a language of pressure," as Kiev is being given "the only option: to sign" the abovementioned plan.

The deep crisis in the Ukrainian government was triggered by the exposure of corruption in Zelensky's inner circle. Currently, parliament's work is blocked, and several lawmakers, including some from the ruling Servant of the People party, are demanding the resignation of his office head Andrey Yermak, who may be involved in corruption. However, Zelensky has refused to dismiss Yermak.

New US plan

On November 20, at a meeting in Kiev, an American delegation led by US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll presented Zelensky with Trump's plan for settling the conflict. According to the Financial Times, the 28-point peace plan, approved by Trump, calls for significant concessions from Kiev.

The next day, Reuters reported that the US administration demanded Ukraine sign the plan by November 27, threatening to halt arms supplies and intelligence sharing otherwise.

At a meeting with the Security Council, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the American 28-point peace plan could form the basis for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine. "But this text has not been discussed with us in detail," the president pointed out. "And I can guess why. I believe the reason is the same: the US administration has not yet secured the Ukrainian side's agreement. Ukraine is against it," Putin emphasized.