No troop withdrawal from Donbas, Ukraine’s Zelenskyy tells reporters

“If we leave Donbas, it will open the way for Russia to advance into Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv regions,” he said.

Zelenskyy said he understood that Russia wanted Kyiv to pull out of Donbas in return for Moscow not advancing in other directions. He said territorial issues should only be discussed after Russia agrees to a ceasefire, and that security guarantees for Ukraine must be part of those talks.

The Ukrainian leader also said Russia was moving troops from the Sumy region to Pokrovsk and Zaporizhzhia in preparation for a new assault at the start of September.

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces had retaken six of the 18 settlements in the Sumy region that were under Russian occupation.

He added that small Russian infantry groups had advanced up to 10 km in several areas along the eastern front near Dobropillia and Kramatorsk.

(With Reuters inputs)

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