'Ukraine-Russia will have to swap some land for peace': Trump
What's the story
United States President Donald Trump has said that both Ukraine and Russia would have to cede land to each other for a possible peace agreement. "Russia's occupied a big portion of Ukraine. They occupied prime territory. We're going to try to get some of that territory back for Ukraine," he said ahead of his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. It is unclear what land Russia may cede to Ukraine, considering Kyiv has never claimed any Russian territory.
Peace push
Trump hints at possible 3-way meeting with Zelensky
Trump said he would use the meeting with Putin on Friday to press for an end to the ongoing conflict. "I'm going in to speak to Vladimir Putin, and I'm going to be telling him, you've got to end this war. You've got to end it," he said. Trump claimed that within two minutes of meeting Putin, he would know whether progress was feasible.
Conflict overview
About the ongoing war
The war, which started in February 2022, has seen Ukraine try to push back Russian forces. Russia occupies around 20% of Ukrainian territory, while Ukraine holds little to no Russian land. European leaders are cautious about making major concessions to Moscow due to fears of long-term security implications for the West. Despite Trump's past talks of land swaps, neither Russia nor Ukraine has shown interest in ceding territory as part of a peace deal.Zelenskyy
Proposal doubts
Possible three-way meeting
Trump also stated that he will keep European leaders updated if Putin proposes a "fair deal" during the negotiations and that he will first speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "out of respect." He stated that, while he and Zelensky "get along," he strongly disagrees with what the Ukrainian president has done. Trump previously blamed Zelenskyy for the war. He also hinted at a possible three-way meeting with Zelenskyy in the future, after his talks with European leaders post-Alaska summit.