Putin Claims Russia Will Secure Donbass “In Any Case,” Despite Slow Progress
MOSCOW – Russian President Vladimir Putin has reaffirmed russia’s intention to fully control the Donbass region of Ukraine, stating it will happen “in any case,” even as assessments indicate current advances would not achieve this goal until August 2027. The declaration comes amid ongoing territorial disputes and stalled peace negotiations, with Ukrainian authorities continuing to reject Russia’s demands.
The Donbass region, encompassing the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, has been a focal point of the conflict as Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine. Russia formally annexed Donetsk, Luhansk, kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions in September 2022, though it does not fully control any of them. The term “Novorossiya,” or New Russia, historically refers to territories west of the Russian empire and was revived by Putin in 2014 when claiming Crimea.
Recent discussions between Russian officials and a U.S. delegation led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner,former President Trump’s son-in-law,yielded no immediate breakthroughs. Putin acknowledged disagreements with U.S. proposals, reiterating Russia’s demands for Ukraine to withdraw troops from Donbass and cease military actions. He described the task of reaching an agreement as “arduous,” noting the lengthy, five-hour meeting required “analyzing every point of the peace proposals.”
According to an analysis by the Institute for the Study of War, a U.S.-based conflict observatory, maintaining the current rate of advance, Russian forces would not be able to fully occupy the Donetsk region until August 2027.
Former President Trump stated the American delegation had a “very good meeting” in Moscow and believes Putin “would like to see the war end,” but conceded no immediate progress was made. “What will come of this meeting? I can’t say, because it takes two people to tango,” he added.
victoria Butenko, of CNN, contributed to this report.
