Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine would reject any Russian proposal to give up the Donbas region in exchange for a ceasefire, warning it could be used by Russia as a springboard for future attacks.

In recent days, Russia’s troops broke through a segment of Ukraine’s defensive line near the city of Pokrovsk, a Ukrainian stronghold in the Donetsk region. Russian forces have partly surrounded the city and are likely to tighten the noose around Pokrovsk to force Ukrainian troops to withdraw, a tactic they have used to capture other cities.

A peace deal that requires Kyiv to accept swapping Ukrainian territory with Russia would not only be deeply unpopular.