Family and friends of a soldier who died on the battlefield at the beginning of November, paid tribute at his funeral in Hostomel Saturday as Ukraine’s Western allies rallied around the war-torn country pushing to revise a U.S. peace plan seen as favoring Moscow despite its all-out invasion of its neighbor.

Ruslan Zhyhunov, 41, a machine gunner died while repelling the Russian assault in the Kramatorsk direction in eastern Ukraine, where Russian forces are pushing hard to gain ground in Donbas.

The 28-point blueprint to end the Kremlin's aggression sparked alarm in Kyiv and European capitals, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying Friday that his country could face a stark choice between standing up for its sovereign rights and preserving the American support it needs.

The U.S. plan foresees Ukraine handing over territory to Russia, something Kyiv has repeatedly ruled out, while reducing the size of its army and blocking its coveted path to NATO membership. It contains many of Moscow’s long-standing demands, while offering limited security guarantees to Kyiv.

Speaking at his graveside on a cold, sunless day in the northwest outskirts of the capital, Andrii Honcharuk, 71, a retired soldier who served together with Zhyhunov in the territorial defense in 2022 criticised the plan.

“How can you exchange the territory of your ancestors for something? For what? And why? How?,” Honcharuk said.

Ukrainian envoys will meet a U.S. delegation in Switzerland to discuss the proposal, a top official said Saturday, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants Kyiv to respond by next week.

But European leaders warned against rushing a peace deal, seeing their own future at stake in Ukraine’s fight to beat back Russia, and have insisted on being consulted in peace efforts. On Saturday, they prepared to meet on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, in a show of support to Kyiv.

“It's not as easy as it seems. The war will not end soon. As long as Putin is alive, it [the war] will go for a long time. And as long as Europe will sleep and the whole world will watch loyally - I say it softly, in order not to use strong words - it will continue. We will still be dying for a long time,” Honcharuk said.

AP video by Oleksii Yeroshenko