Vladimir Putin, in a phone conversation with President Donald Trump on Thursday, demanded that Kyiv fully surrender control over Donetsk, reported The Washington Post, citing two senior officials familiar with the content of the conversation.
Putin offered in return part of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, which are under Russian control, officials said. This is slightly less than his territorial claims made in August at the summit between Trump and Putin in Anchorage. Some White House officials viewed this as progress.
Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting on Friday insisted that the Ukrainian delegation agree to the transfer of Donetsk, noting that the region is predominantly inhabited by Russian-speaking residents.
Trump did not publicly comment on Putin's demand for the return of the entire Donetsk in his public statement on Friday after the White House meeting. Ukraine supported Trump's call for a ceasefire along the current front lines of the conflict before negotiations on a more sustainable cessation of hostilities. Officials privately state that they acknowledge that Russia is likely to maintain de facto control over the captured territory and that they are seeking reliable security guarantees from Washington and Europeans to prevent Russia from resuming the war.