Zelenskyy Pushes for Trump Meeting to Resolve Ukraine Peace Deal Territory Dispute
KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for a high-level meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in a renewed effort to bridge persistent differences over territorial agreements in ongoing Ukraine-Russia peace talks. Though both sides continue to vow commitment to diplomacy, disagreement over control of contested regions remains one of the major sticking points in negotiations aimed at ending the nearly four-year conflict.
In recent discussions involving U.S. and Ukrainian officials, negotiators edged closer to a 20-point framework designed to shape a comprehensive peace plan, but Zelenskyy stressed that questions of territorial control — particularly in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region and at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant site — require direct engagement from the highest offices in Kyiv and Washington.
Zelenskyy has made it clear that Ukraine seeks to maintain sovereignty over its current front lines and territory, while U.S. negotiators are trying to devise compromise mechanisms, including demilitarized zones or special economic regions, to satisfy both Kyiv and Moscow and lay the groundwork for an enduring ceasefire.
Despite progress on several diplomatic fronts, including shared security guarantees and potential economic aid components, major disagreements persist. Russia’s demands for Ukrainian troop withdrawals from parts of Donetsk and broader territorial compromises are among the most contentious issues that Zelenskyy says must be addressed in direct Trump-Zelenskyy talks.
For Ukraine, any peace deal that undermines its territorial integrity is unacceptable, and Kyiv continues to insist on a solution that protects its sovereignty while securing long-term security assurances, particularly from Western allies.
