Zelenskyy: Moscow rushing to break Ukrainian lines ahead of Alaska talks

Zelenskyy told reporters that the most intense fighting is around Kramatorsk and Dobropillia, Donetsk Oblast, where small Russian infantry detachments—armed only with light weapons—advanced roughly 10 kilometers beyond the frontline. 

“Some have already been located—some destroyed, some taken prisoner,” said the president.

“We will find and eliminate the rest soon. The goal of this push is clear: by Aug. 15, especially in the U.S. information space, to show that Russia is advancing and Ukraine is losing.”

At the same time, he noted some recent movements on the battlefield that are favorable for Ukraine. In Sumy Oblast, Ukrainian troops regained control of six of 18 key positions that had been occupied by enemy forces. They also reached the Russian border in two locations and advanced about 900 meters into enemy-held territory. In Luhansk Oblast, Ukrainian units pushed roughly 1 kilometer forward, while positions in Zaporizhzhya and Kharkiv oblasts held firm.

On Aug. 8, Donald Trump announced a meeting with Putin in the U.S. state of Alaska on Aug. 15, calling it “a significant event in bilateral relations between the U.S. and Russia.”

The U.S. president also said he will discuss Russia’s war against Ukraine with Putin, and that his settlement plan envisages a territorial swap in which Kyiv will regain part of its land but be forced to give up others. According to several media outlets, this means ceding Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts to Russia.

Politico reported that the White House proposed freezing the war along the contact line in Kherson and Zaporizhzhya oblasts in exchange for Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.

On Aug. 9, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukrainians will not give their land to the occupiers and that the territorial issue is enshrined in Ukraine’s Constitution, which no one will violate.

He also said that Russia is pushing the idea of exchanging Ukrainian territory for other Ukrainian territory, which would only give the aggressor better positions to resume the war.