In call with Trump, Putin demands full control of Donetsk Oblast that he has failed to conquer for 11 years, WP says

Russian President Vladimir Putin demanded that Ukraine surrender Donetsk oblast during a recent phone call with US President Donald Trump, Washington Post reported on 18 October. Citing two senior officials familiar with the conversation, the outlet said Putin also suggested giving up parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts in exchange for full control of Donetsk Oblast. Russia’s initial invasion began in 2014, when it fully occupied Crimea and seized parts of Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts. Over the three and a half years of full-scale invasion, Russia has failed to capture either of the two eastern regions completely.

Putin’s territorial demand according to WP sources

WP says that the cited officials stated that Putin allegedly told Trump that Russia "would be willing to surrender parts of two other regions of Ukraine he has partly conquered, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, in exchange for full control of Donetsk." One senior US official briefed on the call described the offer as “slightly less sweeping” than Putin’s earlier demands during the Trump-Putin summit in Anchorage in August. Another senior European diplomat dismissed the proposal entirely, calling it “like selling them their own leg in exchange for nothing.”

Trump avoids endorsing Putin’s demand

Trump has not publicly supported Putin’s terms. After meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on 17 October, he urged both sides to halt the fighting and make a deal.

According to Washington Post, the meeting with Zelenskyy left Ukrainian officials disappointed. They had hoped to secure long-range Tomahawk missiles but left Washington without any agreement on weapons deliveries after Putin's call to Trump.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is leading preparations for a new Trump-Putin summit in Budapest in the coming weeks. Kyiv has welcomed the meeting, hoping it could reinforce Trump’s proposal for a ceasefire along the current front lines.

US envoy again repeats Kremlin's false narrative 

During the White House talks, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff pressed the Ukrainian delegation to consider handing over Donetsk, using the argument that the oblast is mostly Russian-speaking — a frequent Kremlin talking point.

Witkoff had also served as the main White House intermediary with Moscow before the August Anchorage summit, which European diplomats said resulted in a misunderstanding of Russia’s demands and no tangible progress.

Read the follow-up:

Zelenskyy rejects Putin’s alleged “Donetsk‑for‑peace” offer reported by Washington Post