Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Tuesday for a "fair" end to the war with Russia without "rewards" for Vladimir Putin, pushing back against demands for Kyiv to make territorial concessions.
"We all want this war to end in a fair way — with no rewards for Putin, especially no land," Zelensky said via videoconference at a summit organized by Poland.
The comment came amid reports that the United States suggested freezing the front line and accepting Russian control over the Crimean peninsula that it seized in 2014 — something Zelensky balks at.
But U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday he believed the Ukrainian leader might concede the Black Sea peninsula as part of a settlement.
Russia has also repeatedly demanded it keep the territory in southern and eastern Ukraine that it occupies and for Kyiv to cede even more land.
Moscow holds about 20% of Ukraine's territory after launching its 2022 invasion that has killed thousands of people and devastated swathes of land.
Washington has said that this week will be "critical" for peace efforts.
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