Russia Rules Out Territorial Exchange - Vows to Expel Kyiv’s Forces from Kursk

The Kremlin has rejected outright any discussion of a territorial exchange with Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, told state media outlet RIA Novosti.

His comments were a direct response to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s statement that Ukraine could offer Russia the part of the Kursk region that his forces hold in exchange for occupied Ukrainian territories.

“This is impossible. Russia has never discussed and will not discuss the issue of exchanging its territory,” Peskov said.

He further warned that Ukrainian forces in the region would be removed by force.

“Ukrainian units will be expelled from this territory; everyone who is not destroyed will be expelled,” Peskov added.

Zelensky told The Guardian that Ukraine would propose a territorial exchange with Russia during any potential peace negotiations. In the interview, published on Tuesday, he also warned that Europe alone could not sustain Kyiv’s war effort.

Zelensky said he would offer Putin land that Ukraine had seized in Russia’s Kursk region six months ago.

“We will swap one territory for another,” he said, though he did not specify which regions Ukraine would seek in return.

“I don’t know, we will see. But all our territories are important, there is no priority,” Zelensky added.

Russia has claimed to have annexed five Ukrainian regions - Crimea in 2014, along with Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia in 2022 - despite not having full control over them.

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Ukraine Launches Counterattacks in Kursk, Pokrovsk Sectors

Although relatively small-scale, most reports said the assaults were successful. The Kremlin’s offensive is continuing on a wide front, but overall the pace of its attacks may be falling off.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump confirmed on Monday that he would soon send his special envoy, Keith Kellogg, to Ukraine with a draft proposal for ending the war.

Trump is pushing for a swift resolution to the conflict, while Zelensky insists on strong security guarantees from Washington as part of any deal.

Kyiv fears that without firm military commitments - such as NATO membership or the deployment of peacekeeping troops - Russia could use a settlement as an opportunity to regroup and launch a renewed offensive.

However, during the latest briefing, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed questions about the possible timeline for ending the war in Ukraine, saying that it remains uncertain.

He stressed that the war, now in its third year, is highly complex and that setting a specific timeframe would be difficult.

Rubio said that the US seeks a resolution that ensures Ukraine’s sovereignty and prevents another outbreak of violence in the future.

“We want to see it end in a sustainable way, meaning that we’re not going to be back here in two years with a new war and in a way that the Ukrainians retain their sovereignty and their national integrity.”

“We’re dealing with some pretty tough people. The Ukrainians have sacrificed a lot. The Russians and Putin have already committed a lot to this as well,” he said.

Rubio said that Trump had campaigned on resolving the war in a fair and just manner but acknowledged that achieving this goal would require significant effort.

“I’m optimistic that we’re going to work harder than any administration’s ever worked to bring an end to this. The President has made it a priority. But it’s not going to be easy.”