As The Washington Post has learned, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has demanded from US President Donald Trump full control over the Donetsk region to end the war, hinting that he is ready to cede parts of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions in return.
Points of attention
- Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff reportedly increased pressure on Volodymyr Zelensky's team to give up Donetsk region, citing its Russian-speaking population as a reason to surrender it.
- The negotiations highlight the ongoing tensions and complexities surrounding the Russian-Ukrainian war, with different parties holding contrasting views on territorial concessions.
Putin wants to get Donetsk region for free
Anonymous sources have shared new details of the phone conversations between the Russian dictator and the US president.
According to them, Putin hinted at a willingness to give up parts of two other partially captured regions of Ukraine — Zaporizhia and Kherson — in exchange for full control over Donetsk Oblast.
What is important to understand is that this is a somewhat more modest territorial demand than the one that the Kremlin leader voiced in Alaska in August.
Some members of Donald Trump's team consider this to be significant progress, moving the Russian-Ukrainian war towards an end.
However, European diplomats are clearly aware that Kyiv will not agree to such a cynical demand.
"It's like selling them their own leg for nothing," said one insider in Europe.
There is also information that Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff increased pressure on Volodymyr Zelensky's team to surrender Donetsk region during a meeting on Friday.
He tried to convince Kyiv that the region was predominantly Russian-speaking — and that, they say, was a sufficient “reason” to hand it over to the enemy.
