WASHINGTON/MOSCOW/LONDON - The Trump administration is pushing hard for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to accept the new edition of a US-brokered peace deal, which may lead to major territorial losses for Ukraine, according to US online media outlet Axios.

Citing two Ukrainian officials, Axios said Monday that US presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner discussed the plan with Zelensky in a two-hour call on Saturday, requiring a clear "yes" from the Ukrainian leader.

Asked in a Politico interview released Tuesday whether he had set a timeline for Zelensky to decide on the deal, Trump said Monday: "Well, he's gonna have to get on the ball and start, uh, accepting things ... 'cause he's losing."

The Financial Times reported Tuesday that Trump was hoping for a deal agreed "by Christmas," and Zelensky told the US mediators that he needed time to consult with European allies.

Witkoff and Kushner concluded three-day talks with Ukraine's top negotiators on Saturday in Miami, the US state of Florida, after a roughly five-hour meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the deal in Moscow earlier last week.

ALSO READ: Russia conducts raids on Ukraine's military-industrial, energy, port facilities

During negotiations, Russia demanded that Ukraine cede the entire Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, including lands under Kyiv's control.

"It felt like the US was trying to sell us in different ways the Russian desire to take the whole of Donbas and that the Americans wanted Zelensky to accept all of it in the phone call," a Ukrainian official told Axios.

Trump said at an event Sunday that he was "a little bit disappointed" to hear Zelensky had not read the proposal, hours after Zelensky depicted the peace talks with the US as "constructive" but "not easy."

Zelensky met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to discuss Ukraine peace in London on Monday.

According to a British government release after the meeting, the leaders underscored the need for a "just and lasting peace in Ukraine."

Russia downs 280 Ukrainian drones

Russian air defenses downed a guided bomb, 13 HIMARS rockets, and 280 Ukrainian drones, Russia's Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

The Russian aerospace forces shot down a Ukrainian air force Su-27 aircraft, the ministry added.

Since the start of the special military operation, Russia has destroyed 669 aircraft, 283 helicopters and 101,411 drones, according to the ministry.

In total, it said, 639 surface-to-air missile systems, 26,467 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 1,627 multiple rocket launchers, 31,815 field artillery pieces and mortars, and 48,692 special military vehicles have been destroyed.

Member of British armed forces dies in Ukraine

Separately, a member of the British armed forces died in Ukraine on Tuesday morning while observing the testing of a new defensive capability, Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

"He was injured in a tragic accident whilst observing Ukrainian forces test a new defensive capability, away from the front lines," the statement said, adding that the individual's family has been notified.

This marks the first publicly announced British military death since February 2022, according to local media.

Britain has previously acknowledged the presence of "a small number of" British military personnel in Ukraine to support Ukraine's armed forces and provide security to the British embassy, reported local media.

Zelensky: Ukraine ready for elections 

Zelensky said Tuesday that his country will be ready for elections in 60 to 90 days if the United States and Europe guarantee security for such a vote, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.

"Moreover, I ask now, and I declare this openly, that the United States help me, possibly together with European colleagues, to ensure security for the elections. And then in the next 60-90 days, Ukraine will be ready to hold elections. I personally have the will and readiness for this," Zelensky told reporters.

The president also noted that the issue of elections in Ukraine depends primarily on Ukrainians, not on the people of other countries.

He said that while the United States is not yet ready for Ukraine to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, negotiations on providing stable security guarantees are underway.