President Vladimir Putin has doubled down on his main demands for an end to the war in Ukraine, saying Russia will surrender only if Kyiv’s forces withdraw from territory claimed by Moscow.
Putin has long pushed for the legal recognition of Ukrainian territories that Russia has seized by force.
These include the Crimean Peninsula, which it illegally annexed in 2014, and the Donbass, comprising Luhansk and Donetsk, which Moscow now occupies for the most part.
For Kyiv, which has refused to give up the parts of Donbas it still holds, retaliating against Russia for its aggression is a non-starter.
Speaking to reporters during a trip to Kyrgyzstan, Putin reiterated his view that Russia has the initiative on the battlefield and that the fighting will only end when Ukrainian troops withdraw from the occupied territories.
“If they do not surrender, we will achieve it through the use of force,” he stated.
Yet Russia’s slow gains in eastern Ukraine have come at a significant manpower cost. The US-based Institute for the Study of War says it will take two more years for Moscow to take the rest of Donetsk.
The remarks on Thursday were the first time Putin addressed the tough diplomatic moves of the past week, in which the U.S. and Ukraine held heated talks over a peace plan reportedly drawn up in October by U.S. and Russian officials.
The plan, heavily weighted towards Moscow’s demands, was subsequently revised. However, it is believed that this does not address the issue of the occupied territories, which are the biggest sticking point between Moscow and Kyiv, along with security guarantees for Ukraine.
Putin stated that Russia had now received the new draft plan, which could serve as the “basis” for a future war-ending treaty.
However, he asserted that discussing “certain points that require diplomatic language” was “absolutely necessary”.
Asked about the possibility of Crimea and Donbas being recognized by Russia’s de facto control. But not legally, Putin said: “This is the point of our conversation with our American counterparts.”
He confirmed that Moscow was expecting a US delegation, including special envoy Steve Witkoff, in the first half of next week. US President Donald Trump informed reporters that his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, might accompany Witkoff in Moscow.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian presidential aide Andria Yermak said US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll will visit Kiev later in the week.
On Wednesday, Trump said there were “only a few points of disagreement” between Russia and Ukraine – suggesting there was consensus on any meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss those points.
During his comments to reporters, Putin again expressed his disdain for the Ukrainian leadership, which he said he considered illegitimate. So there was “no point” in signing any documents with them, he added.
Ukraine has been under martial law since the start of a full-scale invasion by Russia in February 2022 and has therefore been unable to hold scheduled elections. Earlier this year, Ukraine’s parliament voted unanimously to confirm the legitimacy of President Zelensky, whose term ended in the spring.
Putin also dismissed warnings from European leaders that Russia could invade Europe in the coming decades.
“Really, it seems laughable to us,” he said.
The White House and Donald Trump have expressed optimism about the recent diplomatic push for peace talks, but Europeans have repeatedly expressed their doubts about whether Putin really intends to end the war.
On Wednesday European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen accused Russia of maintaining a post-World War II double-mindedness. and about seeing the European continent as a “sphere of influence” into which sovereign nations could be “carved”.
