The Washington Post reported this on October 18, citing two anonymous senior officials — one American and one European — familiar with the details of the conversation.“During the call between Trump and Putin, the Russian leader hinted that he was ready to give up parts of two other Ukrainian regions he partially occupies — Zaporizhzhia and Kherson — in exchange for full control of Donetsk,” the newspaper wrote.The publication noted that Ukrainians would not accept such a proposal, quoting a European source.The Washington Post reached out to both the Kremlin and the White House for official comment, but neither had responded as of publication.This proposal has surfaced before, after the Alaska summit.Following his in-person meeting with Putin at Elmendorf-Richardson Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska, in August, Trump told European allies that “the Russian president reiterated his desire to control the key Luhansk and Donetsk regions but seemed open to compromise in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, along with a ‘freezing’ of the front lines,” Fox News reported at the time.According to Fox News, Trump himself was “not entirely opposed” to such a scenario.During that earlier post-summit call, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also took part, according to Reuters, and once again categorically rejected any suggestion of handing over Donetsk or Luhansk to Putin.On October 16, Trump spoke again with Putin and invited him to meet in Budapest, to which Putin tentatively agreed.On October 17, Trump met with Zelenskyy at the White House, where the main issue discussed was how to pressure Russia into peace negotiations. However, the two sides failed to reach an agreement on supplying Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles. Trump said he wanted to speak with Putin first.He also proposed that both sides halt fighting along the current front line.German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk reaffirmed Europe’s unwavering support for Ukraine, while UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged allies to develop a joint U.S.–European plan for ending the war, modeled after Trump’s 20-point plan for Israel and Gaza.