American President Donald Trump urged his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to accept the conditions set by Russia to end the conflict. The event took place during the meeting between the two leaders at the White House on Friday.
At the meeting, according to information from the Financial Times, the American president warned Zelenskyy about a threat made by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Russian president stated that he would "destroy" Ukraine if the country did not comply with Moscow's demands.
According to information from the newspaper, during the meeting, Trump insisted that Zelenskyy hand over the entire Donbas region to Russia. He repeatedly reiterated key points from his telephone conversation with the Russian president, which took place the day before this meeting.
Reporters noted a tense atmosphere in the room where the meeting took place. Nevertheless, in the end, Ukraine managed to secure Trump's support for maintaining the current front lines.
After the meeting, the American president stated that the two sides should take action to stop the war, while preserving the current positions on the front line.
Financial Times provides information about the details of the telephone conversation between Trump and Putin on Thursday. The Russian president proposed an exchange of small territories in the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, located on the front line, in exchange for larger parts of Donbas, which are currently under the control of Ukraine.
The publication emphasizes that this proposal represents a reduction in the initial demands of the Russian president from 2024, which included Kyiv ceding the entire Donbas, as well as the territories of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, representing a total area of nearly 20,000 square kilometers. This indicates a change in Moscow's position.