Putin to Billionaires: Donbas Non-Negotiable, Territory Swaps Possible for Ukraine Peace

• President Putin told Russian billionaires he insists on retaining all of Donbas but is open to partial territory exchanges elsewhere for peace.
• The revelation came during a late-night Kremlin meeting on December 24, reported by Kommersant newspaper's Andrei Kolesnikov.
• Putin's "concessions" align with earlier "understandings" from an Anchorage summit with Trump, implying "Donbas is ours."
• Ukrainian President Zelenskiy stated no common ground has been found on ceding Donbas or the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.
• Discussions also included joint Russian-U.S. management of the Zaporizhzhia plant, US interest in crypto mining, and supplying Ukraine.

Why It Matters: Putin signals conditional peace: Donbas is non-negotiable, but other territorial concessions are on the table.