Russia Says Ukraine Must Withdraw, Abandon NATO Bid for Peace

Russia said on Wednesday that its position on ending the war in Ukraine has not changed since President Vladimir Putin outlined his conditions last year. These include the full withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from key regions and Ukraine giving up its plans to join NATO.

Putin is set to meet U.S. President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday for the first U.S.-Russia summit since 2021. The two leaders are expected to discuss ways to end the war. Trump has said a settlement would likely require both sides to exchange some of the territory they currently control.

Russia Controls Almost One-Fifth of Ukraine

As of now, Russia occupies 19% of Ukraine, which includes full control of Crimea and Luhansk. Also, more than 70% of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, as well as small areas of Kharkiv, Sumy, Mykolaiv, and Dnipropetrovsk, are under Russian control.

There have been media reports suggesting that Washington believes Putin may soften his demands. However, Russian Foreign Ministry deputy spokesperson Alexei Fadeev told reporters that Moscow’s stance is the same as when Putin made his June 14, 2024, speech.

Ukraine Had Rejected All the Demands of Russia

Putin set out his key demands in the speech, which said Ukrainian troops must leave the parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson still under Kyiv’s control. He also demanded that Ukraine must formally abandon its bid to join NATO, and the country must commit to remaining neutral. He stated that the rights of Russian speakers in Ukraine be protected and that it be recognized that Crimea, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson are parts of Russia.

However, Ukraine had dismissed these demands as an unacceptable ultimatum. Kyiv has consistently said it will never recognize Russian control over its territory, and most of the world recognizes Ukraine’s borders as they were in 1991. Based on the current battle lines, Putin’s plan would mean Ukraine losing an additional 21,000 square kilometers (8,100 square miles) of land.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has demanded that Russia must first agree to a ceasefire before talks on territory can happen.

Also Read: Ukrainian President Zelenskyy Says Russia Wants Donetsk in Exchange for Ceasefire