Russian President Vladimir Putin is open to discussions with former U.S. President Donald Trump about ending the war in Ukraine along the front lines but insists there will be no territorial concessions and demands Ukraine’s neutrality in any deal, according to sources cited by Reuters.
Putin “excludes any possibility of serious territorial concessions and insists that Kyiv abandon its ambitions to join NATO,” said five sources familiar with Kremlin thinking, as reported by Reuters.
At the same time, the Kremlin might agree to end the war along the front lines. There is also room for negotiation on the exact division of four eastern regions: Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson.
Moreover, Russia may be open to withdrawing troops from relatively small areas it controls in the Kharkiv and Mykolaiv regions.
Moscow is also prepared to discuss security guarantees for Kyiv, but only if Ukraine agrees to limit the size of its military and to restore the rights of the Russian language in Ukraine.
One Russian official stated that there would be no agreement unless Ukraine receives security guarantees, adding: The question is how to avoid a deal that could eventually pull the West into direct confrontation with Russia.
When asked about a potential ceasefire agreement, two Russian sources referred to the Istanbul Agreement framework.
Inside Russia, Putin could present a ceasefire deal that allows Russia to hold most of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson territories as a victory, claiming it would protect the Russian-speaking population in eastern Ukraine and secure a land bridge to Crimea. The future of Crimea itself is not open for discussion, all Russian officials have stated, according to Reuters.
At the same time, the decision by U.S. President Joe Biden to allow Ukraine to launch ATACMS missiles deep into Russia “could complicate and delay any resolution and harden Moscow’s demands,” the sources said.
If a ceasefire agreement is not reached, “Russia will continue the fight.”
