Zelensky rules out ceding Donbas to Russia in any deal

KYIV: Ukraine on Tuesday ruled out withdrawing troops from its Donbas region as part of a peace deal with Russia, after US President Donald Trump suggested both sides would have to cede territory.

“We will not withdraw from the Donbas… if we withdraw from the Donbas today — our fortifications, our terrain, the heights we control — we will clearly open a bridgehead for the Russians to prepare an offensive,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters.

Read more: US, Russia eye truce deal that will cement Putin’s gains in Ukraine

PERSONAL VICOTRY

Zelensky also said that Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had scored a “personal victory” by getting invited to talks with Trump on US soil, and that the meeting further delayed sanctions on Moscow.

“First, he will meet on US territory, which I consider his personal victory. Second, he is coming out of isolation because he is meeting on US territory. Third, with this meeting, he has somehow postponed sanctions,” Zelensky added.

NEW RUSSIAN OFFSENSIVES

On the other hand, he also told reporters that Russia was planning new ground assaults on at least three different areas of the front line in order to pressure Kyiv and seek concessions.

“They are preparing for an offensive operation, we believe, in three directions. The main directions are Zaporizhzhia, Pokrovsk, and Novopavlivka,” Zelensky said.

Experts are of the view that Putin wants to take advantage of the planned Alaska meeting with Trump on Friday and make news gains before that.

RUSSIAN ADVANCE

At the same time, he admitted that Russian troops had advanced by up to 10 kilometres (six miles) near the eastern coal mining town of Dobropillia, but vowed that Kyiv would soon “destroy them”.

“Russian units have advanced 10 kilometres deep in several spots. They all have no equipment, only weapons in their hands. Some have already been found, some destroyed, some taken prisoner. We will find the rest and destroy them in the near future,” Zelensky said.

LAND SWAP

On Monday, Trump described his upcoming summit with Putin as a “feel-out meeting” to gauge his ideas for ending the war in Ukraine, as European leaders rushed to ensure respect for Kyiv’s interests.

Fearing privately that Putin will team up with Trump to force unacceptable compromises, European leaders plan to speak separately Wednesday with both Zelensky and Trump.

“This is really a feel-out meeting a little bit,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

“We’re going to see what he has in mind and if it’s a fair deal, I’ll reveal it to the European Union leaders and to NATO leaders and also to President Zelensky,” Trump said.

“I may say — lots of luck, keep fighting. Or I may say, we can make a deal.”

“There’ll be some swapping, there’ll be some changes in land,” he said.

But Trump said he would also tell Putin that “you’ve got to end this war.”

“This is really a feel-out meeting a little bit,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

“We’re going to see what he has in mind and if it’s a fair deal, I’ll reveal it to the European Union leaders and to NATO leaders and also to President Zelensky,” Trump said.

“I may say — lots of luck, keep fighting. Or I may say, we can make a deal.”

NO CHANGE IN BORDERS

But EU leaders stressed on Tuesday “the inherent right of Ukraine to choose its own destiny.”

Read more: Kallas says any US-Russia deal must include Ukraine and EU

“A just and lasting peace that brings stability and security must respect international law, including the principles of independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and that international borders must not be changed by force,” they said in a statement.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has invited the French, British and other European leaders and the EU and NATO chiefs to virtual talks on Wednesday.

Merz’s office said Monday the leaders would discuss “further options to exert pressure on Russia” and “preparation of possible peace negotiations and related issues of territorial claims and security.”