‘We will never leave...’: Zelenskyy refuses to cede Donbas region that could be Putin's 'springboard' for future war

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday (August 12) has rejected a Russian proposal to cede more Ukrainian territory in exchange for a ceasefire, warning that Moscow would simply use any gains as a springboard for a future war.

At a press briefing in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said Vladimir Putin was demanding Ukraine withdraw from the final 9,000 square kilometres of Donetsk still under Kyiv’s control, a message he said was relayed to him by US officials ahead of Friday’s planned summit between Donald Trump and the Russian leader. He stressed that agreeing to such terms would “merely lay the groundwork for another war”.

Zelenskyy said he did not believe Trump supported Russia’s demands and expressed hope the US leader would act as a fair mediator when he meets Putin in Alaska.

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The Ukrainian president also said there was no sign Russia was preparing to honour a ceasefire, pointing to reports that small sabotage units had breached Ukrainian defences in eastern Donbas, advancing roughly six miles in three days. He further warned that Russia was planning fresh offensives along three sectors of the frontline.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the Trump–Putin summit, and a day before a virtual meeting with US and European leaders, Zelenskyy accused Putin of seeking to dominate Ukraine because he “does not want a sovereign Ukraine”. He warned it would be dangerous for Ukraine to be pressured by the US into accepting Russia’s demand to seize the remaining parts of Donbas after the Alaska talks. The territory sought by Moscow amounted to “about 90,000 square kilometres” of Ukraine, he said.

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Last week, Russia signalled for the first time that it might consider a ceasefire in return for Ukraine withdrawing from the areas of Donbas still under its control. While Trump suggested the two countries could explore a “swapping of territories”, Zelenskyy said he understood Russia’s offer as merely “not to advance further, not to withdraw from anywhere”, with no genuine swaps on the table.