The Kremlin has firmly rejected the possibility of a territorial exchange with Ukraine, with Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov stating that “this is impossible.” “Russia has never discussed and will never discuss exchanging its territory,” he said.
The statement comes in response to recent comments by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who suggested in a Guardian interview published on 11 February that Ukraine could potentially exchange territory it currently controls in Russia’s Kursk region for part of Russian-occupied Ukrainian lands.
In the interview, Zelenskyy proposed the possibility of trading territory, though he did not specify which occupied Ukrainian regions might be involved in such an exchange, noting that “all our territories are important, there is no priority here.”
Kyiv may consider swapping seized Russian territory for occupied lands of Ukraine, Zelenskyy says
The context for these diplomatic exchanges stems from increased speculations about possible Russia-Ukraine negotiations to stop the war, with president Zelenskyy already stating he is ready for direct talks with Putin if the West backs him, including by providing firm security guarantees for Ukraine such as continuous military aid or boots on the ground.
Ukraine captured over 1,000 square kilometers of the Russian Kursk Oblast in August 2024. Russia’s numerous counterattacks allowed it to reclaim part of the land, but recently Ukraine has again expanded its controlled area inside Russia.
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