"Putin failed to capture Donbas in 12 years". Zelenskyy calls for negotiations from the front line

Peace talks should be conducted from the front line, and the Constitution of Ukraine prohibits giving up territories, the president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He told about this during the press conference in Brussels with the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

"We need real negotiations, and that means they can start where the front line is now. The contact line is the best line to talk. The Europeans support this and we thank everyone. Russia still has no success in the Donetsk region. Putin has not been able to capture it for 12 years, and the Constitution of Ukraine makes it impossible to surrender territories or trade land," the president said.

According to him, since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia during a trilateral meeting with the United States.

"So far, Russia has shown no signs that a trilateral meeting will take place. And if Russia refuses, then new sanctions are needed" Zelenskyy said.

Earlier, Reuters, quoting its own source, said that Zelenskyy rejected the request of the Russian dictator to withdraw Ukrainian troops from the Donetsk region, when this position was voiced by the US president Donald Trump after the summit with Putin.

• On the aftermath of the Alaska talks and preparations for the meeting of the leaders of Ukraine and Europe with Trump on August 18 read in the chronicle by LIGA.net.