Key points
- Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pushed back on U.S. President Donald Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine will have to give up territory to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
- The Ukrainian President made the remarks during a video address on Saturday.
- Zelenskyy’s comments come one day after Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin would meet in Alaska next week.
Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pushed back on U.S. President Donald Trump’s suggestion that a peace deal with Russia would involve Ukraine giving up territory to Moscow.
“The answer to Ukraine’s territorial question is already in the constitution of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said in a message on Telegram early Saturday. “No one will and no one can deviate from it. Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupier.”
Zelenskyy’s comments come after Trump announced on Truth Social that a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place next Friday in Alaska.
Details and logistics of the meeting are still unclear, including if Zelenskyy will even be attending.
A White House official said earlier Friday that the Russians have provided a list of demands for a potential ceasefire for the war in Ukraine.
The White House was hoping for a trilateral summit between Trump, Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, though Trump said Putin meeting with Zelenskyy wasn’t a condition for he and Putin to meet.
The president was asked if Zelenskyy will have to give up territory in any deal to end the war.
“We’re looking at that but we’re actually looking to get some back and some swapping. It’s complicated. It’s actually nothing easy, it’s very complicated. But we’re going get some back, and we’re going to get some switched. There will be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both,” Trump answered.
In his message Saturday, Zelenskyy said any decision taken without Ukraine involved were “decisions against peace,” adding, “They will not achieve anything.”
