The political disputes between Ukraine and Russia have entered an even more heated stage. This time, the focus is on a very strict statement by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. According to him, Kyiv never intends to give its territories to Russia, and the provisions of the Ukrainian Constitution already give a clear answer to this matter.
In his address via Telegram, President Zelensky once again emphasized that in the country’s territorial matters, it is impossible to retreat or give up land through any closed agreements. In his opinion, “the Ukrainian people will never hand over their land into the hands of the invader,” and any decision in this direction should actually be regarded as a step against peace.
Zelensky also touched upon the planned meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, which is expected to take place in Alaska. According to him, the venue is very far from Ukraine, and any agreement to resolve the conflict without Kyiv’s participation will in fact yield no results. “Decisions made without Ukraine are dead decisions. They are solutions that cannot be implemented. We need a genuine and sincere peace that everyone will respect,” he said.
The New York Times writes that Zelensky’s firm position may cause a sharp reaction from Donald Trump. Earlier, Trump had openly stated that Zelensky should be ready to sign a territorial agreement between Moscow and Kyiv.
Political analyst Sergey Markov links Zelensky’s current stance to the joint actions of the so-called “war party” in Europe. According to him, the main goal of this movement is the removal of Donald Trump from the political scene. In his Telegram comment, he noted that this territorial exchange plan was to be implemented at the initiative of the U.S. president, and Putin announced it through Steve Witkoff on August 6.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Putin’s peace plan consists of two stages. In the first stage, the Ukrainian army must completely withdraw from the DPR territory and “freeze” the front line. In the second stage, the general peace terms are agreed with Trump, and then this option is presented to the Ukrainian side for discussion.
It is still unknown in which direction this diplomatic process will continue and how U.S. President Trump will respond to Zelensky’s firm answer. One thing is clear — the leadership of Ukraine has chosen an unyielding position on the territorial issue and has no intention of backing down from it.
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