The 'land swap' that wasn't: Inside Trump's frantic dash for Ukraine peace
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Shortly after meeting Vladimir Putin in Moscow on August 6, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff delivered major news to Donald Trump: The Russian president was prepared to offer significant territorial concessions to end his war in Ukraine. Following Witkoff's readout to the U.S. president, described by two people briefed on the matter, Trump hailed his emissary's "great progress" and agreed to hold a historic summit with Putin, indicating that a land swap was on the table. On an August 7 call with several European leaders, Witkoff indicated that Putin was willing to withdraw from the Ukrainian regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson in return for Kyiv ceding Donetsk and Luhansk, according to a source familiar with the exchange.