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Ukraine won’t withdraw troops from the territories it controls, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated on Might 19, rejecting Russian calls for put ahead by the nation's delegation in Istanbul.

"It's our land, we gained't withdraw our troops from our territory," Zelensky stated responding to a query by the Kyiv Impartial.

Zelensky's assertion follows a name between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump through which they mentioned situations a potential finish to Russia's warfare in Ukraine.

Through the first direct Ukraine-Russia talks in years, held in Istanbul on Might 16, Moscow demanded that Kyiv withdraws its troops from 4 Ukrainian areas — Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, all which Russia controls partially.

"It signifies that they (Russia) don't need peace," Zelensky stated. "In the event that they demand what they know we gained't comply with," he added.

Investigation: Uncovering the secret Russian FSB operation to loot Ukraine’s museumsAs Ukraine’s liberating forces advanced in the fall of 2022, several trucks stopped near the rear yard of the Kherson Local History Museum. Inside the building itself, dozens of people moved back and forth like ants through the corridors. These people didn’t work there — they were employees from museums inThe Kyiv IndependentYevheniia Motorevska