“ US President Donald Trump has denied that he forced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi to agree to transfer all of Donbas to Russia. Source: Reuters citing three sources familiar with the negotiations Details: According to Reuters, Friday’s meeting between Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky took place in a tense atmosphere. According to the interlocutors, the discussion ended with Trump’s position on “dealing where we are” – that is, freezing the conflict on the current demarcation lines. “We think they should just stay on the lines where they are,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Oct. 19. At the same time, he denied that he offered Zelensky to give the entire Donbas to Russia. “Let it be divided as it is. It is divided right now. I think 78% of the land has already been captured by Russia,” the American president said in response to a Reuters correspondent’s question. Trump added that the parties could agree “on something later,” hinting at the possibility of future talks. According to the agency’s sources, the meeting was a disappointment for the Ukrainian side. Zelensky expected to convince the American leader to provide Kiev with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles capable of hitting targets deep inside Russian territory. However, as Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday, Trump has not yet made a final decision on the matter. According to several sources, the conversation was far from diplomatic. “It was pretty bad,” one of the sources said, adding that Trump’s message was that “your country is going to freeze and your country is going to be destroyed” if Ukraine doesn’t make a deal with Russia. Another source denied using the word “destroyed,” but both confirmed that Trump used profanity several times. The interlocutors had the impression that Trump’s position was strongly influenced by his conversation with Vladimir Putin, which took place the day before. According to the Financial Times, during that conversation, Putin proposed a territorial exchange: Ukraine would give up Donetsk and Luhansk regions in exchange for small parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. One of the publication’s sources claims that Trump told Zelensky that Putin threatened to “destroy” Ukraine if she did not agree. Giving up this territory, according to one Reuters source, would make the rest of Ukraine much more vulnerable to further Russian attacks and would be tantamount to “suicide.” It is reported that among American officials, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff most aggressively persuaded the Ukrainian side to agree to the Russian proposal. According to one of the sources, he appealed to the fact that a large part of the Russian-speaking population lives in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. What preceded: After a meeting with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi on October 17, Donald Trump said that Ukraine and Russia “should stop where they are.” Zelensky agreed with Trump that “we should stop where we are now.” According to the media, at the meeting, Trump made it clear that he is not yet considering providing Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles. According to The Washington Post, in a conversation with Trump, Putin demanded full control of Donetsk region to end the war, hinting that he would be willing to cede parts of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions in return. Zelensky rejected the possibility of transferring additional unoccupied territories to the Russian Federation.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
Volodymyr Zelenskyi. Photo: Getty Images Source: Reuters with reference to three sources familiar with the progress of the negotiations
Details: According to Reuters, the Friday meeting between Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky took place in a tense atmosphere. According to the interlocutors, the discussion ended with Trump’s position on “dealing where we are” – that is, freezing the conflict on the current demarcation lines.
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“We think they should just stay on the lines where they are,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Oct. 19. At the same time, he denied that he offered Zelensky to give the entire Donbas to Russia.
“Let it be divided as it is. It is divided right now. I think 78% of the land has already been captured by Russia,” the American president said in response to a Reuters correspondent’s question.
Trump added that the parties could agree “on something later,” hinting at the possibility of future talks.
According to the agency’s sources, the meeting was a disappointment for the Ukrainian side. Zelensky expected to convince the American leader to provide Kiev with long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles capable of hitting targets deep inside Russian territory. However, as Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday, Trump has not yet made a final decision on the matter.
According to several sources, the conversation was far from diplomatic.
“It was pretty bad,” one of the sources said, adding that Trump’s message was that “your country is going to freeze and your country is going to be destroyed” if Ukraine doesn’t make a deal with Russia. Another source denied using the word “destroyed,” but both confirmed that Trump used profanity several times.
The interlocutors had the impression that Trump’s position was strongly influenced by his conversation with Vladimir Putin, which took place the day before. According to the Financial Times, during this conversation, Putin proposed a territorial exchange: Ukraine gives up Donetsk and Luhansk regions in exchange for small parts of Zaporizhia and Kherson regions. One of the publication’s sources claims that Trump told Zelensky that Putin threatened to “destroy” Ukraine if she did not agree.
Giving up this territory, according to one Reuters source, would make the rest of Ukraine much more vulnerable to further Russian attacks and would be tantamount to “suicide.”
It is reported that among American officials, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff most aggressively persuaded the Ukrainian side to agree to the Russian proposal. According to one of the sources, he appealed to the fact that a large part of the Russian-speaking population lives in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
What preceded:
- After a meeting with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi on October 17, Donald Trump said that Ukraine and Russia “have to stop where they are“.
- Zelensky agreed with Trump that “we have to stop where we are now.”
- According to the media, at the meeting, Trump made it clear that for now does not consider providing Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles.
- According to The Washington Post, Putin is in conversation with Trump demanded full control over Donetsk region to end the war, hinting that he was ready to cede parts of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions in return.
- Zelensky dismissed the opportunity transfer of additional unoccupied territories to the Russian Federation.