Zelensky: Ukraine will not withdraw troops from the unoccupied part of Donbas

Ukraine will not withdraw troops from the unoccupied part of Donbas, because this is a springboard for a future new Russian offensive. Thus, in a few years, Putin will have an open path to Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions, as well as Kharkiv.

President Volodymyr Zelensky stated this at a meeting with journalists on August 12, Suspilne reports.

The president said that the US Special Representative Steve Witkoff said that there should be territorial concessions on both sides, and that Putin certainly wants Ukraine to withdraw from the territory of Donbas not occupied by Russia.

"Now they want to give them about 9 thousand square kilometers [the size of the unoccupied territory of the Donetsk region], this is about 30% of the entire Donetsk region, and this is a springboard for new aggression," Zelensky emphasized.

He added that the exchange of territories is a very complex issue that cannot be separated from security guarantees for Ukraine. The President believes that first a ceasefire, then negotiations on other issues.

"I am not going to surrender my country, because I have no right to do so. And the question is not that I am hiding behind the Constitution. The state is what? Something like private property? 30% of the Donetsk region is what? Like my private property?" Zelensky stressed and confirmed that in a conversation with the US President Donald Trump regarding territorial issues, he referred to the Ukrainian Constitution.

Trump, when talking about his meeting with Putin, said that in the agreement to end the war in Ukraine "there will be an exchange of territories" — he did not specify which ones. Later, the US president said that he was concerned that Zelensky was talking about "constitutional approval" when it comes to Ukrainian territories.

What preceded

The Wall Street Journal reported that on August 6, Putin presented the Trump administration with a proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine. In the first phase, Ukraine would withdraw its troops from the Donetsk region and freeze the front line. In the second phase, Putin and Trump would agree on a final peace plan, which would then be discussed with Zelensky.

A WSJ source says that Putin called for a halt to the war on the current lines in the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.

European partners and Ukraine responded to Putinʼs plan with a counter-proposal on August 9. It states that the parties must achieve a ceasefire before any other steps can be taken.

And the exchange of territories can only be carried out on a reciprocal basis, meaning that if Ukraine withdraws troops from some regions, Russia must withdraw troops from others. Ukraineʼs territorial concessions must be protected by security guarantees, including potential NATO membership.

"Ukrainians will not give away their land," said President Zelensky in response to the announcement of the Trump-Putin meeting. He emphasized that the Ukrainian Constitution has a clear answer about territories.

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