Trump Denies Demanding Zelensky Cede Entire Region to Putin: ‘We Never Discussed That!’
President Donald Trump denied reports that he pressed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to surrender the Donbas region to Russia, insisting that “we never discussed it” and that his only demand was for both sides to “stop right now at the battle lines.”
The denial came after a Financial Times report described a volatile closed-door meeting at the White House on Friday that allegedly devolved into a “shouting match” between Trump and Zelensky.
Citing European officials briefed on the exchange, the report said Trump adopted Russian President Vladimir Putin’s talking points “verbatim,” warning the Ukrainian leader that “if [Putin] wants it, he will destroy you.”
According to the newspaper, Trump threw aside Ukrainian battlefield maps and demanded that Zelensky accept Moscow’s terms, including ceding the Donbas region in exchange for partial Russian concessions in southern Ukraine. The meeting followed a phone call between Trump and Putin the day before, during which the Russian leader reportedly offered to “forfeit some small areas” of occupied territory.
In an Air Force One press gaggle late Sunday, Trump was asked about whether he had endorsed the surrender of the Donbas region, which he denied.
“On Friday, you said you had a cordial meeting with Zelensky. During that meeting, did you tell him he needed to cede all of the Donbas region to Russia?” a reporter asked.
“No, we never discussed that,” Trump began.
He continued: “We think that what they should do is just stop at the lines where they are – the battle lines, you have a battle line right now. The rest is very tough to negotiate if you’re going to say, you take this, we take that, there are just so many different permutations. So what I say is they should stop right now at the battle lines. Go home, stop killing people and be done.”
“What do you think should happen with the Donbas region then?” the reporter followed.
The president replied: “Let it be cut the way it is. It’s cut up right now. I think 78% of the land is already taken by Russia. You leave it the way it is right now. They can negotiate something later on down the line. But I said cut and stop at the battle line, go home, stop fighting, stop killing people.”
The president has vowed to end the war within months and is expected to meet Putin in Hungary in the coming weeks. His remarks mark a shift from earlier claims that Ukraine could still win militarily and reclaim its territory.
Zelensky, for his part, has maintained that Ukraine will not accept any peace deal that leaves its land under Russian control.
Watch above via CNN.
