Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejects Russian President Vladimir Putin's demands to cede the Donbas region, citing sovereignty concerns and the area's economic and strategic importance.

Russian President Vladimir Putin wants any settlement to end the war to include giving Russia full control of the Donbas

Moscow launched 40 missiles and nearly 600 drones across Ukraine overnight, forcing Poland to scramble jets as the western city of Lviv was hit. Follow the latest.

Ukraine’s Donbas region, consisting of Donetsk and Luhansk, is at the heart of Moscow’s goals. An industrial powerhouse in the Soviet era, it also has rich farmland, important rivers and a coastline on the Sea of Azov.

Donald Trump is reportedly planning to urge Ukraine to surrender the Donetsk and Luhansk regions as part of negotiations over an end to the war.

"Ukrainians will not gift their land to the occupier," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this month.

Why is Donbas so critical to Russia and Ukraine? This mineral-rich, industrial region has become the epicenter of one of the most devastating conflicts in modern history. From Soviet-era tensions to Putin’s 2014-backed separatist uprising,

Russia’s goal is to destabilize Europe, a report released Tuesday by the International Institute for Strategic Studies said.