Ukraine proposes territory swap with Russia amid peace talks
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has officially confirmed for the first time that he plans to propose exchanging part of the Kursk region for Ukrainian territory with Russia. "We will swap one territory for another," he said, although he admitted he is unsure which part of the Russian-occupied lands Ukraine will seek in return.
President Zelensky explained that he aims to trade a section of the Kursk region, currently controlled by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, for Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia. This proposal is expected to be put forward in upcoming peace talks.
"We will swap one territory for another," he reiterated, while acknowledging the uncertainty of which Russian-held lands Ukraine will demand back. "But all our territories are important, there is no priority," Zelensky added in an interview with The Guardian.
In the same interview, Zelensky mentioned that if US President Donald Trump ceases support for Ukraine, "Europe alone will be unable to fill the gap."
"We aren’t going to complain that some programmes have been frozen, because the most important thing for us is the military aid and that has been preserved, for which I’m grateful … If the American side has the possibility and desire to continue its humanitarian mission, we are fully for it, and if it doesn’t, then we will find our own way out of this situation," he concluded.
