Name: Why Russia Won’t Agree to Peace Without Ukraine’s ‘Fortress Belt’
Uploaded: 2025-12-05T05:01:00Z
Duration: 4 min 53 s
Description: Territory has emerged as the central stumbling block to a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia. The initial U.S.-led proposal calls for Kyiv to surrender the "Fortress Belt," the fortified strip of land that forms the backbone of the country's defenses. Ukraine’s leaders cannot accept this.

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Territory has emerged as the central stumbling block to a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia. The initial U.S.-led proposal calls for Kyiv to surrender the "Fortress Belt," the fortified strip of land that forms the backbone of the country's defenses. Ukraine’s leaders cannot accept this. Illustration: Jason Boone

https://m.wsj.net/video/20251204/f5f8b69f-1af2-45e0-927f-e1d072725955/1/hls/manifest-hd-wifi.m3u8

Territory has emerged as the central stumbling block to a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia. The initial U.S.-led proposal calls for Kyiv to surrender the "Fortress Belt," the fortified strip of land that forms the backbone of the country's defenses. Ukraine’s leaders cannot accept this.

Why Russia Won’t Agree to Peace Without Ukraine’s ‘Fortress Belt’

Narrator: This is the so-called Fortress Belt, one of the most fortified parts of Ukraine. Located in the Eastern Donetsk region, it is among the most coveted pieces of Ukrainian territory that Russia has been trying, but so far, failing to capture since 2014. But a proposed peace plan put forward by the Trump administration would hand control of this territory to Moscow, something that Kyiv has previously said it cannot accept. The Fortress Belt runs for roughly 30 miles along the western part of the Donetsk Region. It's made up of four major cities and the surrounding areas along the H-20 highway, a crucial supply line for Ukraine's armed forces. The four cities were briefly seized by Russian paramilitaries in 2014. But were taken back by Ukrainian forces who have been building up defensive positions ever since.

These cities have remained a critical defensive point for Ukraine over the course of the war. We know that in 2024, Ukraine spent more than $1 billion on defensive fortifications in total. The east of the country, Donetsk Region has been the focus of the fighting since the beginning of the war. So we can safely assume that a large proportion of that was spent in this area.

Narrator: Over a decade of effort has turned the territory into a Ukrainian stronghold, made up of a network of trenches with anti-tank ditches, rows of concrete pyramids known as dragon teeth, barbed wire, and mine fields.

They've created huge bands of fortifications that are aimed at preventing the Russians from advancing, or at least making the Russians pay a very, very heavy price for any inch of territory that they are able to take.

Narrator: As well as being heavily fortified, the cities in the Fortress Belt are protected by their topography.

The terrain in this area is more elevated, which is beneficial to the defender. It's much harder for the Russians to advance.

Narrator: Analysts say this elevation is what makes these cities such a price for Moscow.

Behind these fortifications, Ukraine's territory is flatter and it'll be much easier for the Russians to advance, and much harder for the Ukraine's to defend.

Being able to take the cities in the Fortress Belt would likely allow Russia to seize the entire Donetsk Region. While Moscow controls most of the territory, it has struggled to occupy the remaining 30%. But the peace plan proposed by the Trump administration involves Ukraine ceding this land to Russia, opening up the territory beyond the region, should the Kremlin decide to keep on fighting,

There's absolutely no way that Ukraine could give away this territory. Russia has had to fight so hard for it. It's much more easily defensible territory than the territory behind it.

Narrator: On the battlefield, Russia has been inching closer to taking control of the region, recently claiming Pokrovsk, a town of the south of the Fortress Belt, something Kiev denies. Pokrovsk has endured more than a year under siege. Ukraine claims Russia amassed over 150,000 troops for the final assault on the city, which had a pre-war population of just 60,000.

And this is a testament to how difficult it has been for the Russians to advance. Russia has all but abandoned using armored vehicles to advance because as soon as they do, and they can be so easily targeted by explosive drones. They're advancing on motorbikes to try to move quickly and be more difficult to target. They're trying to get one, two, three infantry men into villages, into buildings, into basements, then building up their presence there and trying to move onto the next building.

Narrator: Analysts say both sides have suffered staggering losses, but control of Pokrovsk would be a big gain for Russia.

It would allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to continue to claim that Russia is advancing, that there's nothing that can stop the Russians. This is very important for his negotiations with President Trump.

Narrator: With talks ongoing, Kyiv is now pushing to adjust key clauses of the Trump administration's initial proposal, with officials fearing that handing over this land won't stop the war.

Zelensky has frequently said, according to the Ukrainian constitution, he cannot simply give away land. He also said that if Ukraine were to give anything away, Russia would never be satisfied. Russia didn't start this war to take over an extra 20 to 30 kilometers of the Donetsk region. What Putin is interested in, as he's openly said, is destroying Ukrainian nationhood. He wants to take control of Ukraine, which he doesn't believe is a real country. He believes that Ukrainians are Russians and he wants to force Ukraine to submit. So handing over the extra kilometers of Donetsk Region is not going to stop the war.