Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly told Donald Trump in a phone call last week that Ukraine must give up full control of Donetsk, a key region in eastern Ukraine, for the war to end, according to two senior officials familiar with the conversation, The Washington Post reported.
Putin demands control of Donetsk in call with Trump
Trump and Putin are likely to meet for a second time this year. Reports suggest the meeting could take place in Budapest, Hungary, though nothing has been confirmed yet. During the call, Putin said he might give up parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, two other regions Russia partly controls, only if he could gain full control of Donetsk, The Washington Post reported. Russia currently controls roughly 20 percent of Ukrainian territory following its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Why Putin wants control over Donetsk?
For more than a decade, Moscow has tried to gain control over Donetsk but has been repeatedly pushed back by Ukrainian forces. Kyiv sees Donetsk as an important barrier stopping Russia from reaching the capital. If Russia takes full control of Donetsk, it would help avoid more heavy military losses and strengthen its claim to the region. If Ukraine gives up western Donetsk, it would not only lose land, but also risk the loss of an important defense line against any future Russian attacks. Even though Trump is hopeful about making a deal, officials say Russia is still determined to take this region.
During the recent meeting at the White House, Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff asked the Ukrainian officials about giving up Donetsk, according to WSJ. Officials have said that Donetsk remains a critical stronghold. Some US officials saw the demand as a possible concession compared to Putin’s big demands, but Ukrainian and European diplomats were doubtful. “It’s like selling them their own leg in exchange for nothing,” one senior European diplomat said.
Neither the White House nor the Kremlin immediately responded to the reports. Since Russia took over Crimea in 2014, Ukraine has been encouraging people to use the Ukrainian language more to help the country stay united. Officials say the county expects Russia to keep the areas it already controls, but wants security guarantees from the US and Europe to stop Russia from attacking again
After the meeting with Zelenskyy, Trump wrote on social media: “It is time to stop the killing, and make a deal! Enough blood has been shed, with property lines being defined by War and Guts. They should stop where they are. Let both claim Victory, let History decide!”
Trump recently mediated a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel following a hostage exchange deal in Gaza. Over the past few months, he has switched between supporting Russia’s and Ukraine’s points of view on the war. Ukrainians had long hoped to receive long-range Tomahawk missiles during Friday’s meeting, but the weapons were not delivered. Speaking alongside Zelensky, he said he hopes to end the war without using the missiles.
When asked if Putin was just buying time, Trump said he wasn’t worried: “I’ve been played all my life by the best of them, and I came out really well. It’s all right if it takes a little time. But I think that I’m pretty good at this stuff.”
