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ConflictsUkraine

Ukraine war: Is Trump's land-for-peace deal feasible?

Ralph Martin
August 12, 2025

With Donald Trump's summit with Vladimir Putin in Alaska approaching, territorial concessions in exchange for peace are high on the agenda. Trump has talked about Russia and Ukraine "swapping land," but how feasible is that?

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Ahead of a highly anticipated meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump proposed "swapping land" to settle the conflict. But how feasible is such a plan?

Russian troops are steadily gaining ground in Ukraine, albeit at a staggering human cost. Aside from the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014, Russia occupies large parts of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson regions in eastern and southern Ukraine. Kyiv, on the other hand, only holds a sliver of Russia's Kursk region. Additionally, both Kyiv and Moscow face constitutional barriers to potential territorial concessions.

DW breaks down the complexities behind the battlefield and the diplomatic impasse.