Translated with AI
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected Russia's demands to withdraw Ukrainian troops from territories under Kyiv's control. He said this at a briefing, commenting on the results of the talks in Istanbul.
"It is my constitutional duty to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. No one will surrender their lands, their territories, their people," the head of state emphasized.
According to Zelensky, if Russia puts forward such conditions, it means only one thing – it is not interested in a ceasefire. "They clearly understand that Ukraine will not agree to this," he said.
As previously reported, on May 16, the first direct negotiations between the delegations of Ukraine and Russia since 2022 took place in Istanbul. The Russian side once again demanded that Kyiv withdraw its troops from the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions, which Moscow considers "its territories."
It should be noted that even before the negotiations, US Vice President J.D. Vance stated that Moscow’s demands were obviously unrealistic, since Russia was laying claim to territories that it did not even control.
