Zelenskyy Says US Summit In Alaska A ‘Personal Victory’ For Putin

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday said that Russian leader Vladimir Putin has clinched a “personal victory” by getting invited for talks with United States president Donald Trump in Alaska, AFP reported. Zelenskyy has also rejected withdrawing troops from Ukraine’s  eastern Donbas region as part of a peace deal, after Trump’s claim of a possible land swap to end the conflict. 

"We will not withdraw from the Donbas... if we withdraw from the Donbas today -- our fortifications, our terrain, the heights we control -- we will clearly open a bridgehead for the Russians to prepare an offensive," Zelenskyy told reporters.

Russia had voiced its claim on Donbas, which includes the Ukrainian regions of Lugansk and Donetsk, since the war commenced in 2022. 

The meet, set to take place on August 15 is the first between heads of both countries (USA and Russia) since 2021. Zelenskyy had earlier stated his concerns that Ukraine’s absence at the negotiation table will prove detrimental for its interests. The White House, however, has claimed the talks to be “a listening exercise” and a “fact-finding” mission. Prior to the meeting, the Ukrainian president is scheduled to hold virtual talks with Trump and European leaders on Wednesday. 

Zelenskyy has asserted that the summit would postpone sanctions on Russia which Trump had promised to impose if Putin does not end the war. "First, he will meet on U.S. territory, which I consider his personal victory. Second, he is coming out of isolation because he is meeting on US territory. Third, with this meeting, he has somehow postponed sanctions," Zelenskyy said, AFP reported.

Despite the upcoming meeting, Russia has advanced its forces in the Donetsk region. Zelenskyy also warned that Russia had made sharp advances near the coal mining town of Dobropillia and was planning new ground assaults on at least three different areas of the front line.

"Russian units have advanced 10 kilometres deep in several spots. They all have no equipment, only weapons in their hands. Some have already been found, some destroyed, some taken prisoner. We will find the rest and destroy them in the near future," he said.