Trump backs Russia's land-for-peace plan to end Ukraine war: Report
Iran Press TV
Sunday, 17 August 2025 7:59 AM
US President Donald Trump has told his European counterparts he had agreed with Russian President Vladimir Putin's demand that Ukraine make territorial concessions to end the conflict, says a report.
Two unnamed sources with direct knowledge of the US-Russia summit in Alaska on Friday told The Guardian on Saturday that Trump has said in talks with European leaders that a peace agreement can be reached if Ukraine agrees to offer the Donbas region to Russia.
According to the sources, as a prerequisite for concluding the conflict, Putin insisted on Ukraine's withdrawal from Donbas, which comprises the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces.
Although Luhansk is almost entirely under Russian control, Ukraine still holds key parts of Donetsk, including the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.
Putin told Trump that in exchange for Donetsk and Luhansk, he would halt further advances and freeze the frontline in the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, where Russian forces hold significant areas.
Trump's endorsement of transferring Donbas to Russia coincides with his expressed preference for directly pursuing a peace agreement rather than opting for a ceasefire.
He claimed on Saturday in a post on Truth Social that "it was determined by all" that it was better to go directly to a peace agreement, though European leaders indicated this was not their view.
His endorsement of Putin's territorial demands represents a breach with European allies and Ukraine that oppose such an agreement.
European and Ukrainian leaders fear that a straight-to-peace agreement, without a preliminary ceasefire, gives Moscow the upper hand in future negotiations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected in Washington on Monday to meet with Trump. Europeans were invited to join the Ukrainian leader at the White House.
The European leaders have issued a cautiously measured response, saying they are "ready to work with US President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelensky towards a trilateral summit with European support," but "it will be up to Ukraine to make decisions on its territory. International borders must not be changed by force."
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