Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected on Saturday formally ceding Ukrainian territory, stressing that Kyiv must be part of any negotiations to end the war, in a video address.

He dismissed the planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, warning that any peace deal excluding Kyiv would lead to “stillborn decisions.”

The meeting, scheduled for Friday in Alaska, is seen as a potential breakthrough after weeks of expressing frustration that more was not being done to quell the fighting.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s territorial integrity must be non-negotiable and emphasized that lasting peace must include Ukraine’s voice at the table.