Ukraine is ready to discuss territorial changes as part of a peace agreement, but will not cede territory that Russia has not occupied, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday.
We need real negotiations, which means they can start from where the front line is now—the contact line is the best line for discussion, he said at a press conference in Brussels, alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, before departing for Washington where he will meet Donald Trump on Monday.
According to Zelensky, Russia has failed to capture Donetsk, which it has been trying to control since 2014. Putin has not been able to take it for 12 years, and the Ukrainian Constitution makes it impossible to cede or bargain for territory, he stressed.
At the same time, the New York Times reported that Trump told European leaders that peace could be achieved if Ukraine agreed to cede eastern territories. Critical Donetsk cities, such as Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, remain under Ukrainian control, despite a full-scale Russian invasion.
Zelensky stressed that he is open to meeting with Putin as part of a future trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the United States and Russia, with American mediation. Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia in such a trilateral, he said.
So far, Russia shows no indication that such a meeting will take place, and if it refuses, then new sanctions must follow.
According to Politico, Kiev is making any discussion on territorial issues conditional on achieving and maintaining a ceasefire, something Moscow refuses to commit to in terms of time.
On Monday, Zelensky will be joined at the White House by Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, in an effort to present a united front for Europe.
In addition, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte will also travel to Washington.
The Ukrainian president also addressed the issue of the European perspective, rejecting scenarios that would have the EU move forward with Moldova's candidacy, leaving Ukraine behind.
There can be no distinction between Ukraine and Moldova. If that were to happen, it would automatically mean that Europe is divided on the issue of Ukraine, he warned.
