U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday, August 11, that Ukraine and Russia should engage in land swaps as a path to ending the war.
“Land swaps will happen,” Trump stated. “Russia has occupied very valuable territories, but we will try to take some of these areas back.” He did not specify which territories Russia might give to Ukraine, noting that Kyiv currently holds no Russian land.
Trump added that he would gauge Moscow’s willingness to reach a peace deal “within the first minutes” of meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to international media reports, European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet with Trump before any such summit with Putin.
While Trump has recently taken a tougher public stance toward Moscow—imposing tariffs on Russian oil buyers and sending more weapons to Ukraine—European leaders remain concerned he might agree to a deal requiring major concessions from Kyiv.
The U.S. president also said he may hold a separate meeting with Zelensky, stressing that Washington’s goal is an “immediate ceasefire” in the war, now in its fourth year.
Zelensky has repeatedly insisted that Ukrainians will not “gift” their territory to occupiers, warning that concessions would not end the conflict and calling for greater pressure on Moscow. He emphasized that Russia is “preparing forces for new offensives” and urged that sanctions remain in place until Ukraine receives firm security guarantees.
The Trump administration has yet to disclose details of any potential land exchanges or how Russia would be bound to honor a ceasefire agreement.
