Zelensky rules out ceding land to Russia, refusing to bow to Putin or Trump [View all]
Source: Washington Post
December 8, 2025 at 3:12 p.m. EST
LONDON — Ukraine will not surrender territory, President Volodymyr Zelensky declared on Monday, rejecting a central Russian demand that President Donald Trump had incorporated into his latest proposal to end the Kremlin’s war. “Under our laws, under international law—and under moral law—we have no right to give anything away,” Zelensky said, after meeting with top European leaders to discuss Trump’s plan on Monday. “That is what we are fighting for.”
The unequivocal declaration that Ukraine would not surrender land could mark the collapse of Trump’s latest plan to end the war, which critics condemned as fulfilling a wish list of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Zelensky, speaking to journalists aboard his flight following consultations with British, French and German leaders in London, laid out one of his clearest public statements yet on the emerging U.S.-backed proposal. He said the plan had been stripped of what he called “explicitly anti-Ukrainian provisions,” suggesting that Kyiv was open to a deal.
But he stood firm on the issue of land — a view shared by European leaders who have insisted that Putin should not be permitted to redraw recognized international boundaries by force.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/12/08/europe-ukraine-leaders-trump-plan/
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