The World Today
BRUSSELS, 17 (EUROPA PRESS)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed on Sunday that it is impossible for kyiv to voluntarily hand over territories to Russia as part of a hypothetical peace agreement.
In a joint press conference this Sunday from Brussels, the President of the European Commission insisted that, "with regard to Ukraine's territorial issues," the position of the EU and Ukraine is "clear": "International borders cannot be changed through the use of force. This kind of decision must be made by Ukraine, and Ukraine alone, but never by force," she asserted.
The appearance comes after international media began reporting on Saturday that Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed to his US counterpart, Donald Trump, during the recent summit in Alaska, that they take over the entire Donbas region, which represents virtually all of eastern Ukraine.
In return, Putin offered to halt his offensive in the southern front and halt further attacks in the rest of the country as one of the conditions for accepting a possible peace agreement with the Ukrainian government, according to sources close to the summit, in reports that have not been officially confirmed.
"Russia is still unsuccessful in Donetsk," the Ukrainian president stated during the press conference, although he did not directly address these possible conditions. "Putin has been unable to conquer it for twelve years. And the Ukrainian Constitution declares both the cession of territories and their exchange impossible," the Ukrainian president concluded.
