In further remarks to Sky News, the UK’s former representative to Nato, Sir Adam Thomson, said that Mr Zelensky appeared to be preparing domestic audiences for compromises, while “making opening moves” in a likely extended negotiation with Mr Trump over which line to take with the Kremlin.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has suggested that the parts of Ukraine under his control should be taken "under the Nato umbrella" to try and stop the "hot phase" of the war. In a long, wide-ranging interview with Sky News, the Ukrainian president was asked whether he would accept Nato membership, but only on the territory that Kyiv currently holds.