18 hours ago
Last Updated:August 13, 2025, 10:06 IST
Zelenskyy has rejected Putin’s proposal for Ukraine to withdraw from the remaining 30% of Donetsk as part of a ceasefire, warning it would hand Moscow nearly all of Donbas.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (AFP File Image)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has refused to agree to Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump’s proposal for Kyiv withdrawing from the remaining 30 per cent of the Donetsk region that Ukraine controls as part of a ceasefire deal.
Ahead of the much-talked-about Alaska summit between Trump and Putin, scheduled for Friday, Zelenskyy warned that giving up the territory would hand Moscow almost the entirety of the Donbas, a long-sought prize for the Kremlin.
The demand, Zelenskyy said, was conveyed by US officials after US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met Putin, and reiterated that Ukraine would not withdraw from territories it controls.
Addressing a news briefing in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said, “And that, probably, Putin wants us to leave Donbas. That is, it didn’t sound like America wants us to leave."
More meetings at the level of Security Advisors further clarified what Russia actually wanted, Zelenskyy said.
“We will not leave Donbas. We cannot do it," Zelenskyy said.
“For Russians, Donbas is a springboard for a future new offensive," he added.
The region demanded by Russia was too strategically important to give up, he said, because it was a heavily fortified area that protected Ukraine’s central cities.
“I have heard nothing, not a single proposal, that would guarantee that a new war will not start tomorrow and that Putin will not try to occupy at least Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv," Zelenskyy said.
The Ukrainian President also said he believed Putin wanted to dominate his country because he “does not want a sovereign Ukraine".
According to reports, Putin wants Kyiv to pull out of the remaining 30 per cent of the Donetsk region under its control, about 9,000 square kilometres, as part of a ceasefire deal.
On Monday, Donald Trump had said that Kyiv and Moscow will both have to cede land to end the war in Ukraine, and talks with Putin this week will instantly show whether the Kremlin leader is willing to make a deal.
It was also reported that European leaders and Zelenskyy plan to speak with Trump ahead of his summit with Putin in Alaska, amid fears Washington may dictate unfavourable peace terms to Ukraine.
Trump has hardened his stance towards Moscow by agreeing to allow additional US weapons to reach Ukraine and threatening tariffs against buyers of Russian oil, but fears have persisted in Europe that he might agree to a deal that forces big concessions from Kyiv.
In the past, too, Trump has talked about land swaps, but neither Russia nor Ukraine has been open to ceding land as part of a peace deal.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said, “There’ll be some land swapping going on."
“I know that through Russia and through conversations with everybody, to the good of Ukraine," he said, adding that Russia had occupied some “very prime territory" but “we’re going to try to get some of that territory back."
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Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.
Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.
August 13, 2025, 09:51 IST
News world 'Will Not Leave': Zelenskyy Vows To Defend East Ukraine Flashpoint Amid Trump's Land Swap Plan
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