Putin Reaffirms Donbass Goal as Ukraine Pursues US Talks
Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated Russia will seize the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine “under any circumstances,” including through military force, reiterating a key demand as Ukrainian officials prepare for further peace negotiations. This declaration came ahead of a scheduled visit to New Delhi, India, where Putin is expected to meet with prime Minister Narendra Modi this Thursday.
Putin’s commitment to taking donbass was made in an interview with Indian media outlet India Today, as reported by Russian state news agency TASS. He asserted Russia woudl “liberate the Donbas and Novorossiya in any case – by military or other means.” Novorossiya, a ancient term for western territories of the Russian empire, was also invoked by Putin in 2014 when claiming Crimea as part of Russia.
The declaration coincides with a new round of peace talks initiated by Ukraine. Ukrainian officials Rustem Umerov, head of the country’s delegation, and Andrii Hnatov, chief of the Kiev general Staff, are traveling to Miami this Thursday to discuss a potential plan to end the conflict with US counterparts.
Prior to his departure for India, Putin held a five-hour meeting in the Kremlin on Tuesday with a North American delegation led by special envoy Steve Witkoff, and including Jared Kushner, son-in-law of former US President Donald Trump.Putin described the meeting as lengthy, requiring a detailed analysis of US peace proposals. While acknowledging some points as “more or less acceptable,” he stated Russia disagreed with others, calling the task of reaching an agreement “tough.” He reiterated russia’s demands for Ukraine to withdraw troops from Donbass and ”refrain from military actions,” according to TASS.
Kremlin advisor yuri Ushakov indicated that discussions with the US delegation included the issue of territory, stating, “without which we do not see a solution to the crisis.”
Ukrainian authorities continue to reject Russia’s maximalist demands, viewing them as non-negotiable.
former US President Trump described the meeting between the US delegation and Putin as “very good,” and expressed his belief that Putin “would like to see the war ended.” However, the talks did not result in a breakthrough.
This latest round of Ukrainian-US talks follows a previous high-level meeting four days prior, which US Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterized as “a very productive and useful session where…additional progress was made.”
