Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded that Ukraine withdraw from the Donetsk and Luhansk regions as a condition for ending the war, according to sources with direct knowledge of talks between Putin and US President Donald Trump at the Alaska summit. In exchange, Putin offered to halt further advances and freeze the frontline in the southern Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, where Russian forces occupy significant areas.
Although Luhansk is almost entirely under Russian control, Ukraine still holds key parts of Donetsk, including the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, as well as heavily fortified positions whose defence has cost tens of thousands of lives. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has consistently rejected giving up territory, and European allies have reaffirmed that Ukraine's borders must not be altered through force.
Following his meeting with Putin, Trump told European leaders that he supported a plan to end the war by ceding unconquered land to Russia, the New York Times reported. The plan is expected to be discussed with Zelenskyy during his visit to the White House on Monday. Ukrainian officials have expressed concern over Trump's apparent shift in tone, with one senior official describing Putin's demands as 'a stab in the back'.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military said it had pushed Russian forces back by about 2km on part of the Sumy front in northern Ukraine. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney welcomed US openness to providing security guarantees to Ukraine under a peace deal. Trump also hand-delivered a letter from first lady Melania Trump to Putin, reportedly mentioning the abduction of children resulting from the war.
