Kyiv, Aug 10: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday dismissed suggestions that Kyiv could cede territory to end the war with Russia, following U.S. President Donald Trump’s remark that a peace deal might involve “some swapping of territories.”
“Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Russia would not be “rewarded” for its aggression. His comments came hours before European and Ukrainian officials met U.S. Vice President JD Vance in England to discuss ending the more than three-year war. Representatives from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Finland and Poland attended the talks, which Zelenskyy described as constructive.
The Ukrainian leader also rejected Trump’s plan to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday without Kyiv’s participation. “Any decisions without Ukraine are decisions against peace,” he said.
The Alaska summit will be the first face-to-face meeting between Trump and Putin since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, a war that has killed tens of thousands. Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on terms for peace. Putin’s adviser Yuri Ushakov called the location “entirely logical” given its proximity to Russia.
A joint statement from EU leaders and top officials from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Finland and the UK reaffirmed support for Ukraine, saying only diplomacy combined with pressure on Russia could end the conflict.
Trump, who offered no details on possible territorial swaps, said his meeting with Putin would precede any talks with Zelenskyy. Analysts close to the Kremlin speculate Russia might offer to relinquish areas outside the four regions it claims to have annexed.
Kyiv officials privately acknowledge the difficulty of regaining all lost land militarily but maintain that any formal cession is unacceptable.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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