Just days before US President Donald Trump is set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has firmly ruled out ceding any territory to Russia, insisting that peace talks will be a failure without Ukraine’s direct involvement.
In a video statement on Saturday, Zelenskyy emphasized that his country is prepared to make “real decisions” to achieve a “dignified peace,” but any agreement must uphold Ukraine’s constitution and territorial integrity. “Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier,” he said, warning that “decisions without Ukraine” would be “stillborn” and unworkable. His remarks came just hours after Trump suggested that a peace deal might involve “some swapping of territories” as he confirmed the Alaska meeting with Putin to discuss the war.
Tensions Ahead of Alaska Summit
The upcoming summit will mark the first meeting between sitting US and Russian presidents since 2021. While Trump is hoping for a breakthrough, previous negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv this year have failed. Russia currently claims four partially-controlled Ukrainian regions—Kherson, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Luhansk—in addition to Crimea, which was annexed in 2014.
European Allies Stand Firm
Zelenskyy has also spoken with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, urging allies to take “clear steps” toward a sustainable peace and to resist Russia’s attempts to limit talks to “the impossible.”
Macron reiterated that “Ukraine’s future cannot be decided without the Ukrainians,” stressing that Europe’s own security is tied to the conflict’s resolution. Meanwhile, national security advisers from the US, UK, and EU met in Britain to coordinate their positions ahead of the Trump-Putin summit. A Putin aide, Yuri Ushakov, said the Alaska talks would “focus on achieving a long-term peaceful resolution,” though both sides have admitted the process will be challenging.
