Trump confirms Zelenskyy will not attend key peace summit with Putin in Alaska
Donald Trump has confirmed Volodymyr Zelenskyy will not attend a meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska at the end of the week.
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The two leaders will hold talks on Friday aimed at exploring the possibility for a ceasefire in Ukraine.
It comes after European leaders - including Keir Starmer - said the path to peace for Kyiv "cannot be decided without Ukraine" and the current line of contact between Russia and Ukraine could only be a "starting point of negotiations".
Ahead of the summit, the US President suggested a peace deal could include "some swapping of territories" with reports suggesting this could involve Ukraine giving up its Donetsk region - a claim Zelenskyy strongly denied.
The Ukrainian leader said: "Of course, we will not give Russia awards for what it has done. The Ukrainian people deserve peace."
He added: "The answer to the Ukrainian territorial question already is in the Constitution of Ukraine.
"No one will deviate from this – and no one will be able to. Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier.
"Ukraine is ready for real decisions that can bring peace.
"Any decisions that are against us, any decisions that are without Ukraine, are at the same time decisions against peace.
"They will not achieve anything. These are stillborn decisions. They are unworkable decisions."
Asked whether Sir Keir Starmer believes the Russian President could be trusted in negotiations, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said the UK supported both Kyiv and the US President's push for peace, but not Moscow.
"Never trust President Putin as far as you could throw him, but we obviously will support Ukraine," he said on Monday.
"We will obviously support President Trump and European nations as we enter these negotiations.
"But it is exactly why we've been leading this work on the coalition of the willing, because any ceasefire, as I say, cannot just be an opportunity for President Putin to go away, re-arm, restrengthen, and then go again.
"So we're not going to leave it to trust. We're going to ensure that we're prepared such that we achieve a ceasefire."
In a joint statement released on Saturday, the leaders of Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Finland and the European Commission said: "Ukraine has the freedom of choice over its own destiny. Meaningful negotiations can only take place in the context of a ceasefire or reduction of hostilities.
"The path to peace in Ukraine cannot be decided without Ukraine.
"We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force."
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