NYT: Ukraine Floated ‘Donnyland’ Name for Part of Donbas

Ukrainian negotiators reportedly raised the idea as a symbolic gesture aimed at winning US backing and encouraging the administration to take a harder line against Russia’s territorial demands. Make us preferred on Google Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on December 28, 2025 shows US President Donald Trump (4th R) meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky (4th L) for talks at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE / AFP) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google In recent Ukraine peace talks, Ukrainian officials suggested that the slice of the country’s Donbas region that Russia is still fighting for could be nicknamed “Donnyland” in honor of US President Donald Trump, The New York Times reported. The proposal, described by people familiar with the negotiations as partly symbolic, was intended to appeal to Trump and encourage his administration to take a harder line against Russia’s territorial demands. Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official . The name, a play on “Donbas” and “Donald,” was first raised partly in jest, according to the report. But it remained in circulation during the talks as Ukrainian negotiators looked for ways to frame a potential settlement as a political win for Trump. The Donbas region in eastern Ukraine has been at the center of the conflict since 2014 and remains one of the main battlegrounds since Russia launched its full-scale aggression against Ukraine. According to the report, negotiators also floated the idea that Trump’s Board of Peace could help administer the proposed zone, though neither Russia nor Ukraine has formally joined such a body. Negotiators have also floated the possibility of Mr. Trump’s Board of Peace playing a role in administering the area, which would not be fully controlled by either side and would be branded as an accomplishment for Mr. Trump. NYT recalls that when Poland sought a U.S. military base in 2018, it pitched the idea as Fort Trump. Other Topics of Interest Trump Extends Iran Ceasefire as Vance Pakistan Trip Is Called Off The US president said Tehran must submit terms for a permanent end to the conflict, while Washington keeps its port blockade and diplomacy in Islamabad is put on hold. When Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a peace pledge at the White House last year, they called the transport link it created the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization since 1995. Its international market reach of 97% outside of Ukraine makes it truly Ukraine’s Global – and most reliable – Voice.