Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Ukraine cannot breach its constitution on matters of territory, stating firmly that “Ukrainians will not give their land to occupiers”, reports RTE.
Speaking about US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15, Mr Zelensky said Ukraine remains open to genuine efforts that could lead to peace.
However, he warned that any efforts excluding Ukraine would be moves against peace, reports RTE.
“Any decisions against us, any decisions without Ukraine, are also decisions against peace. They will achieve nothing,” he said, reports RTE.
Since Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022, tens of thousands of people have died, and millions have been displaced from their homes.
Mr Putin has held discussions with Chinese and Indian leaders ahead of his meeting with Mr Trump, who has spent the beginning of his term seeking to mediate peace in Ukraine, but without success so far.
“The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska,” Mr Trump said on his Truth Social platform,” reports RTE.
Earlier, speaking at the White House, he said “there’ll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both” Ukraine and Russia, though he gave no additional details.
Three previous negotiation attempts between Ukraine and Russia have failed, and it is uncertain whether this summit will bring any resolution closer, reports RTE.
Russian attacks have driven millions from their homes and left large parts of eastern and southern Ukraine in ruins.
Mr Putin has ignored repeated ceasefire requests from Ukraine, the United States, and Europe, reports RTE.
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He has also refused to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky at this point, although Zelensky insists such a meeting is necessary to progress towards peace.
During discussions in Istanbul last month, Russian officials made strong territorial demands to stop their advance — asking Ukraine to retreat from areas it holds and to give up Western military support, reports RTE.
The Alaska meeting would be the first face-to-face between sitting US and Russian presidents since Joe Biden and Mr Putin met in Geneva in June 2021.
Mr Trump and Mr Putin last met in person during a G20 summit in Japan in 2019 during Trump’s first term. They have had several phone calls since January, reports RTE.
According to the Kremlin, Mr Putin briefed Chinese President Xi Jinping on “the main results of his conversation” with US special envoy Steve Witkoff, who had recently visited Moscow.
The Chinese leader expressed his backing for a “long-term” resolution to the war, the Kremlin said.
China’s state news agency Xinhua quoted Mr Xi as telling Mr Putin: “China is glad to see Russia and the United States maintain contact, improve their relations, and promote a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis,” reports RTE.
Russia and China have strengthened their political, trade, and military cooperation since the war in Ukraine began.
Mr Putin also spoke by phone with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after both nations criticised fresh US tariffs targeting India’s oil purchases from Russia, reports RTE.
Both China and India have proposed their own peace plans for Ukraine, though these have seen limited progress.
Mr Putin, who has led Russia for more than 25 years and is a former KGB officer, said in June he would be willing to meet Mr Zelensky — but only during a “final phase” of any peace talks, reports RTE.
In his nightly address on Thursday, Mr Zelensky stated, “it is only fair that Ukraine should be a participant in the negotiations.”
Donetsk regional governor Vadym Filashkin said that families with children would be relocated from 19 additional villages in the eastern part of the region, where Russian troops are continuing to advance.
These villages, which are home to several hundred people, are all located within roughly 30km of the active front line, reports RTE.
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