Nigel Farage insists Kyiv will have to seek a peace deal with Russia - as Reform leader says Ukraine may have to be partitioned in negotiations with Kremlin

Ukraine will eventually have to seek a peace deal with Russia, Nigel Farage insisted yesterday, creating a clear divide between his party and the Tories over the conflict.

The Reform UK leader said negotiations with the Kremlin – which could lead to the partitioning of Ukraine – were inevitable as he laid out the party's policies on defence.

By suggesting the conflict could end without an outright military defeat of Russian forces, Mr Farage risks accusations of being 'soft' on Putin.

It marks a clear difference between him and recent Conservative leaders – former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss insisted Russia must be defeated on the battlefield.

Rishi Sunak also helped negotiate a new £39 billion package for Ukraine to help it fight invading Russian forces at last week's meeting of G7 leaders.

Asked if Reform supported the idea of continuing to fund Ukraine's efforts, Mr Farage said: 'We would go on ­sending money to them but I think both sides need to be told that at some point wars either end in negotiation or catastrophe, and this one looks like going on for many, many, many years – and at an horrendous cost of life.

'At some point there have to be face-to-face talks.

'I'm not suggesting that it'll happen quickly, but at some point that's what we'd like to see.'

Asked if that would mean Ukraine having to give up land, he appeared not to rule it out, adding: 'The tough negotiation has to be over Crimea. That is clearly going to be very tough.

'The alternative to having a negotiation is that [the war] goes on for another five years. 

'We can keep pumping money and keep it going, but whether Ukraine can really sustain that loss of troops is an open question.

'It's tough because Russia can keep this war going for ever. We've put ­sanctions on Russia but of course they've become ever closer to the ­Chinese and there is quite a worrying bloc emerging against us.'

Mr Farage predicted that if Donald Trump was re-elected US president this year then Ukraine premier Volodymyr Zelensky could soon be forced around the table with Vladimir Putin.

He said: 'If there is a change of American president, Trump will push for these negotiations to happen and my guess is they would happen.'

Mr Farage is a close ally of Mr Trump and his stance aligns him more to Republican Americans, who have expressed misgivings about continuing to fund Ukraine's war effort.

Ukraine is against peace talks because it believes that with Western military assistance it can still defeat Russian forces.

Negotiations would likely lead to a partitioning of the country, with Russia potentially holding on to the territory it has gained in eastern Ukraine, ­including the Crimean peninsula.

Putin is considered unlikely to concede ground occupied by Russia and is banking on the weakening of Western support for President Zelensky.