Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada: Kyiv will not trade territories under any circumstances

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Canada Andriy Plakhotnyuk described any territorial concessions to Russia as Kyiv’s “red line” in negotiations.

He made the statement in an interview with the Ukrainian outlet Apostrophe.

“As for the red lines that Ukraine has — they consist in the fact that we will not trade our territories under any circumstances. We stand for the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty within its internationally recognized borders. All of this is supported, all these red lines are supported by our partners,” — Plakhotnyuk said.

According to the ambassador, Ukraine “should not be talking” about concessions to Russia. Instead, in his view, the country must be armed and have large-scale financial support so that Kyiv is in “the strongest possible position” at “fair negotiations.” Plakhotnyuk also expressed confidence that Russia’s position is the “obstacle” to negotiations.

Against the backdrop of these statements, on April 27 German Chancellor Friedrich Merz suggested that in the event of a peace agreement with Russia, “part of the territory may cease to be Ukrainian.” Previously, voices in Europe had also spoken of inevitable Ukrainian concessions to settle the conflict.

The Ukrainian side, however, has consistently rejected such scenarios. Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the UN Andriy Melnyk said in April that Kyiv rejects Russian “ultimatums” and “will never give up a single square millimeter of land.” Head of the Ukrainian President’s Office Kyrylo Budanov said the same month that Ukraine has “a certain solution” to the Donbas issue that will “satisfy” the country’s citizens and will not entail territorial concessions.