Zelenskyy's 'victory plan' includes a big hurdle for the West: NATO membership for Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday his plan to win his country’s fight against Russia’s invasion could bring peace next year, but it contains a step that some crucial Western allies have so far refused to countenance: inviting Ukraine to join NATO before the war ends.

“If we start moving according to this victory plan now, it may be possible to end the war no later than next year,” Zelenskyy told his country’s Parliament.

He has recently been trying to win approval for the plan from Western partners, who so far have stopped short of publicly voicing their support for it.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was set to at least partially unveil a plan to win the war against Russia to his country's Parliament on Wednesday after weeks of dropping hints about the blueprint to lukewarm Western allies, including U.S. President Joe Biden.

The plan — comprising military, political, diplomatic and economic elements — is considered by many as Ukraine’s last resort to strengthen its hand in any future cease-fire negotiations with Russia. Thus far, however, no country has publicly endorsed it or commented on its feasibility.

Zelenskyy is keen to get the “victory plan” in place before a new U.S. president is sworn in next year, though Ukrainian officials say neither presidential candidate will necessarily improve Kyiv’s standing in the war.

Zelenskyy’s presentation to Parliament, announced on Monday by presidential adviser Serhii Leshchenko, comes during a bleak moment in Ukraine. The country’s military is suffering losses along the eastern front as Russian forces inch closer to a strategically significant victory near the crucial logistics hub of Pokrovsk.

At every turn, Kyiv is outnumbered by Moscow: The country is struggling to replenish ranks with an unpopular mobilization drive; its ammunition stocks are limited; and Russia’s superiority in the skies is wreaking havoc for Ukrainian defensive lines.

It’s not clear how much of his victory plan Zelenskyy will reveal on Wednesday; Leshchenko indicated that it would be fully unveiled, while other officials suggested that the president would not divulge its most sensitive elements to all lawmakers.

Either way, the plan essentially puts Kyiv’s future in the hands of its allies. Without it, any deal with Russia would almost certainly be unfavorable for Ukraine, which has lost a fifth of its territory and tens of thousands of lives in the conflict. Kyiv would be unlikely to ever recover occupied territory, or receive reparations for widespread destruction across the country.

Several elements of the plan have already come to light: making Ukraine a member of NATO; allowing the country to use Western long-range weapons to strike deep inside Russia; providing resources to strengthen Ukraine's air and other defenses, and intensifying sanctions against Russia.

Ukraine's surprise military incursion into Russia’s Kursk region in August was also part of the plan, Zelenskyy told reporters. He said the 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of territory captured by Ukraine — along with other provisions of the plan — will likely serve as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Russia.

NATO’s Article 5 states that an attack against one member is considered an attack against all. Ukraine's inclusion in the alliance would deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from invading again, Ukrainian officials argue. Western leaders have so far been reluctant to guarantee an invitation, fearing escalation from Putin.

Ukrainian officials were expecting feedback from Western allies at a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, during which defense leaders from 50-plus partner nations gather to coordinate weapons aid for the war. Scheduled for this past weekend, the summit was postponed after Biden canceled his attendance in response to Hurricane Milton in the U.S.

Zelenskyy has since toured Western capitals to present other key allies an outline of his vision. But none so far have given any indication they will support the plan. Some expressed concerns over the tight deadline set by Zelenskyy, who gave allies just three months to adopt the blueprint’s main tenets in late September.

Thus far, the U.S. has been Kyiv’s main backer during the two-and-a-half-year war. But Biden has balked at the request to use long-range weapons to strike specific targets inside Russia, fearing a possible escalation in the war. Meanwhile, an intensifying conflict in the Middle East between Israel and Hezbollah that risks embroiling Iran has diverted Washington’s attention.

Many expect Democratic nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris to continue Biden’s policy and maintain the status quo. Under Biden, U.S. assistance to Kyiv, though substantial, has consistently arrived too late to make a significant difference for Ukrainian forces.

Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump has only said that he’d end the war quickly, without saying how.

Meanwhile, Brazil and China have proposed alternate peace plans that Zelenskyy has rejected, saying they would merely pause the war and give Moscow time to consolidate its battered army and defense industry.

Follow AP's coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

FILE - Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump meets with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Trump Tower, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

FILE - Vice President Kamala Harris meets with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Sept. 26, 2024, in the vice president's ceremonial office inside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

FILE - In this image provided by the Office of the Ukrainian Presidency, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, is watched by Rich Hansen, the commander's representative for the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant, while signing military ordnance in Scranton, Pa., Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. (Office of the Ukrainian Presidency via AP, File)

FILE - Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, on Sept. 25, 2024, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

FILE - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg wrap up a joint press conference on July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

FILE - U.S. President Joe Biden, center, with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, front second left, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, front left, Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, front second right, President of Poland Andrzej Duda, right, and other world leaders pose for a family picture of the launching of a Joint Declaration of Support for Ukrainian Recovery and Reconstruction, on Sept. 25, 2024, in New York. (Leon Neal/Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a joint press conference during the Crimea Platform summit in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)

Israeli jets struck southern Lebanon and Beirut's southern suburbs on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people including a city mayor, Lebanese officials said.

Hezbollah acting leader Sheikh Naim Kassem declared Tuesday that the Lebanese militant group will ramp up attacks on Israel in response to an Israeli airstrike Monday on an apartment building in northern Lebanon that killed at least 22 people. Israel said it struck a target belonging to Hezbollah, but the United Nations called Tuesday for an independent investigation.

Israel has escalated its campaign against Hezbollah in recent weeks, after a year of near-daily exchanges of cross-border fire.

It’s been more than a year since Hamas-led militants blew holes in Israel’s security fence and stormed in, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed over 42,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, who do not distinguish combatants from civilians. The war has destroyed large areas of Gaza and displaced about 90% of its population of 2.3 million people.

In northern Gaza, Israel has been waging an air and ground campaign in Jabaliya for more than a week, leaving families trapped in their shelters.

United States President Joe Biden’s administration warned Israel that it must increase the amount of humanitarian aid it allows into Gaza within the next 30 days or risk losing access to American weapons funding.

Here's the latest:

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati accused Israel of “intentionally targeting” a meeting of the municipal council of the southern city of Nabatiyeh on Wednesday convened to discuss the city’s service and relief situation.

The strike killed the mayor of the city along with four other people and destroyed a municipality building.

Lebanon’s Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi said in a separate statement that the building was targeted during a meeting held to coordinate relief work and aid distribution for people who have remained in southern Lebanon. He said a civil defense member was killed and others injured in the strike.

Mikati accused the international community of being “deliberately silent” about Israeli strikes that have killed civilians and attacks on U.N. peacekeepers.

“What solution can be hoped for in light of this reality?” he said in a statement.

Israel has said that its increasing bombardment of many areas of Lebanon in the past month and the ground invasion it launched two weeks ago are aimed at pushing the Hezbollah militant group back from the border and destroying its weapons caches.

BERLIN — The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees has called for access of international media organizations to Gaza to report about the situation on the ground.

UNRWA's Philippe Lazzarini told a news conference in Berlin on Wednesday that “most of the information that we are receiving is either by (...) local journalists or by organizations operating in Gaza.”

Lazzarini said because there are so many different types of narratives on the conflict, “it is of utmost importance ... that we continue to ask for the presence and all the access of international journalists.”

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian urged Muslim countries to be united against Israel during a phone conversation with the ruler of Oman, the president's website reported Wednesday.

The report quoted Pezeshkian as saying, “If we, Islamic countries, are united with each other, the Zionist regime will not dare to commit crimes so easily," and the U.S. and Western countries also could not support it.

Pezeshkian praised Oman’s stance regarding “Israeli crimes” in Gaza and Lebanon and demanded more pressure on those who are supporting Israel, the report said.

There was no immediate report in Omani state media on the call between Pezeshkian and Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq. Oman long has served as an interlocutor between Iran and the West.

JERUSALEM — Israeli authorities say they have arrested a man who was involved in an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate an Israeli scientist.

In a statement released Wednesday, the Shin Bet internal security agency said Iran paid 35-year-old Vladimir Verhovski $100,000 to kill an Israeli scientist. It did not provide evidence or name the target of the alleged plot.

Iran has accused Israel of being behind the targeted killing of scientists involved in its nuclear program.

The Shin Bet said Verhovski had acquired a gun, cartridge and bullets, and agreed to flee to Russia afterwards. It said he had also gathered information at the direction of Iran.

It’s one of several alleged plots the Shin Bet says it has foiled in recent months that involved Israelis accused of having been recruited by Iran.

Israel and Iran have waged a shadow war for years that burst to the surface after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack triggered the war in Gaza. Israel and Iran exchanged fire directly for the first time in April, and Israel has vowed to retaliate after an Iranian ballistic missile attack earlier this month.

Iran supports armed groups across the region, including Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Health Ministry says Israeli airstrikes on the southern Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh have killed at least 5 people.

The ministry and the state-run National News Agency said the provincial capital’s municipality building was hit by one of the strikes Wednesday. Huwaida Turk, the governor of Nabatiyeh province, told The Associated Press that Mayor Ahmad Kahil was killed in Wednesday’s strikes on the provincial capital. Local media reported that the mayor of Nabatiyeh and local government staff were in the building. Rescue workers are searching for bodies under the rubble.

The NNA says there were at least seven airstrikes in Nabatiyeh and some nearby villages.

Earlier in the week, Israeli strikes over Nabatiyeh destroyed its historic century-old market district.

The Israeli military said it struck dozens of targets in and around Nabatiyeh linked to the Hezbollah militant group, including command centers and weapons storage facilities that it said were embedded in civilian areas.

BEIRUT — Israeli strikes have killed at least 15 people in the southern Lebanese town of Qana, which has long been associated with civilian deaths after Israeli strikes during previous conflicts with Hezbollah.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the strikes in Qana late Tuesday. Lebanon’s Civil Defense said 15 bodies had been recovered from the rubble of a building and that rescue efforts were still underway.

In 1996, Israeli artillery shelling on a United Nations compound housing hundreds of displaced people in Qana killed at least 100 civilians and wounded scores more, including four U.N. peacekeepers. During the 2006 war, an Israeli strike on a residential building killed nearly three dozen people, a third of them children. Israel said at the time that it struck a Hezbollah rocket launcher behind the building.

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron stressed “the absolute necessity of a cease-fire without further delay in Lebanon” and called for Israel to stop operations there in a phone call Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Macron urged Israel “to put an end to this unjustifiable targeting," according to a statement from his office, which also said France would continue to work with troop contributors and alongside the United Nations Secretary-General to ensure the full implementation of the mission of the peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL.

Netanyahu said in a statement after the call that he was opposed to a unilateral cease-fire. He said he would not agree to any arrangement that does not provide security for residents of northern Israel and “does not stop Hezbollah from rearming and regrouping.”

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran is ready for a retaliatory attack from Israel, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.

In a phone call Tuesday with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said his country is fully prepared to answer to any kind of “adventure-seeking.”

“Responsibility of consequences of spreading insecurity in the region will be on the regime and the United States as main supporter,” of Israel, he added.

He urged the U.N. to use its entire capacity for stopping “crimes and invasions,” as well as providing humanitarian aid to Lebanon and Gaza.

Iran launched some 180 missiles at Israel on Oct. 1 in retaliation for the deaths of Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Israel has threatened to strike back for the barrage.

Iran is the main backer of Lebanese Hezbollah and supports anti-Israeli groups in the region such as Palestinian Hamas.

BEIRUT — Israeli jets struck the southern suburbs of Beirut early Wednesday for the first time in six days, Lebanese state media reported. The casualty count was not yet clear.

The attack comes just one day after caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the United States government gave him some assurances of Israel easing its strikes in the Lebanese capital.

Israel says it is striking Hezbollah assets in the suburbs, where the militant group has a strong presence, but is also a busy residential and commercial area. The Israeli military said the Wednesday strike hit a weapons warehouse stored under a residential building.

The Israeli military posted an evacuation warning on X, formerly Twitter, saying it is targeting a building in the Haret Hreik neighborhood. An Associated Press photographer saw three airstrikes in the area, the first coming less than an hour after the notice.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on Oct. 8 in solidarity with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, following their surprise attack on southern Israel. Almost one year of low-level fighting has turned into all-out war and displaced some 1.2 million people in Lebanon.

Elsewhere, Israeli strikes late Tuesday in the southern town of Qana killed at least 15 people, according to Lebanese Civil Defense.

MANILA, Philippines — A European Union official expressed regret over the failure so far of efforts to forge a cease-fire in the Middle East, saying that fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah has made it more difficult to work for wide-ranging reforms in Lebanon and create conditions to draw international financial aid in.

EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič told The Associated Press in an interview late Tuesday in Manila that stalled reforms in Lebanon include the election of a new president, the establishment of a working government and the signing of a deal with the International Monetary Fund.

“It’s difficult to see that happening in these circumstances when Lebanon is under such a strain,” said Lenarčič, who flew to Manila to attend an Asia Pacific conference on disaster mitigation.

“That’s one of the reasons why we’re calling for a cease-fire, so as to allow Lebanon to organize itself so that it can benefit from all the funding which is out there,” he said. “I regret that we have not been heard.”

The EU was also extremely concerned over the killings of civilians in the fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group. “This collateral damage is simply unacceptable,” Lenarčič said.

Rescue workers remove rubble, as they search for victims at the site that was hit by Israeli airstrikes in Qana village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Destroyed buildings that were hit by Israeli airstrikes are seen in Qana village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Rescue workers search for victims at the site that was hit by Israeli airstrikes in Qana village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Rescue workers use a bulldozer to remove rubble of destroyed buildings, as they search for victims at the site that was hit by Israeli airstrikes in Qana village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Rescue workers use a bulldozer to remove rubble of destroyed buildings, as they search for victims at the site that was hit by Israeli airstrikes in Qana village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Rescue workers carry remains of dead people at the site that was hit by Israeli airstrikes in Qana village, south Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)

Zavik Zoigi checks the Sukkah, a temporary hut built for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, placed in front of his residence ahead the weeklong holiday celebrations in Kiryat Shmona, a town located neart to the border with Lebanon, in northern Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Lebanese Red Cross volunteers remove the remains of killed people from the rubble of a destroyed building at the site of Monday's Israeli airstrike in Aito village, north Lebanon, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

People attend the funeral ceremony of the late Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Abbas Nilforushan, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut in late September, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Lebanese army soldiers stand on the rubble of a destroyed building at the site of Monday's Israeli airstrike in the village of Aito, north Lebanon, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Palestinian activist Khairi Hanoun holds up a poster of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah who was killed by an Israeli strike in September, while mourning Rayan al-Sayed, a Palestinian killed in an Israeli raid Monday in the West Bank city of Jenin, during Al-Sayed's funeral, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Smoke rise from Israeli airstrikes on Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Smoke rise from Israeli airstrikes on Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Smoke rise from Israeli airstrikes on Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)