Kyiv, 16 October 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday demanded an immediate invitation for his country to join NATO, as he revealed his much-anticipated "victory plan" to end the war with Russia to the Ukrainian parliament.

"This plan depends on the partners. I stress: on the partners," Zelensky told lawmakers and the military leadership in Kiev.

The president said it was important to push the fighting back onto enemy territory, so that the Russian population can understand the nature of war and eventually turn on the Kremlin.

Restrictions on the use of long-range Western weapons that prevent Ukraine from striking targets deep inside Russia should be lifted, Zelensky said, reiterating a demand he has made for months.

Call for Ukraine's neighbours to shoot down drones

Another aspect of the plan is for Kiev's neighbouring countries to shoot down Russian drones over Ukraine from their territories.

Zelensky also suggested stationing a large arsenal of non-nuclear weapons in Ukraine to deter Russia from further aggression.

The Ukrainian president had previously presented his victory plan to allies in Washington, Berlin and Paris, but not all aspects had become public.

He is due to attend a European Union summit in Brussels on Thursday, aiming to garner support for the plan.

Kremlin slams victory plan as Washington 'diktat'

Moscow on Wednesday slammed Zelensky's plan to end the war with Russia as a "diktat" from the United States.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the plan revealed Washington's willingness for Kiev to fight against Russia "until the last Ukrainian."

The spokesman said that an end to the conflict would only be possible if Ukraine recognized what he called its lack of prospects.

Cautious NATO response

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte reacted cautiously to Ukraine's desire for a quick invitation to join the military alliance as part of his much-touted victory plan.

Rutte only referred to a NATO declaration from a summit in Washington that only said Ukraine's path towards joining the alliance was "irreversible."

The secretary general stressed that NATO had to concentrate on making sure Ukraine was in "the best possible position" should Kiev decide to enter into talks to end the war.

Raw materials offer

Zelensky is offering Western allies access to his country's valuable raw materials as part of his victory plan.

In a speech to lawmakers in Kiev, Zelensky said Ukraine has valuable resources "worth trillions of US dollars," including uranium, titanium, lithium and graphite.

The raw materials will either fall to Russia and its allies, or remain with Ukraine and the democratic world, the president argued.

He also promised that after the end of the war, Ukraine will use its military experience to ensure the security of Europe and NATO.

Its soldiers could even replace US troops in Europe, Zelensky added.

Heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine

After seizing the Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and having its proxies take over part of eastern Ukraine, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbour in February 2022.

It now controls around a fifth of Ukrainian territory, while Ukrainian forces have seized parts of Russia's southern Kursk region.

Zelensky has repeatedly expressed the hope of ending the war on Ukraine's terms during 2025, but Russian troops have continued to advance in recent months, including around the key eastern locations of Toretsk and Pokrovsk.

On Wednesday, the Ukrainian General Staff in Kiev reported 40 attacks near the village of Kurakhivka in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.

While it stated that the advances had been repelled, Ukrainian military bloggers said that Russian units captured the village of Ostrivske, south of Kurakhivka.

Ukrainian troops in Kurakhivka are now being threatened with encirclement, with enemy forces approaching from the north, south and east, although a dam on the Vovcha river could make it difficult for Russian units to advance further from Ostrivske.

Further north, meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities have ordered the evacuation of civilians in some parts of the Kupiansk district.