Putin's harsh terms for ending Ukraine war revealed after crunch peace talks

Just days after the high-profile summit between US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska, the Russian President has unveiled Moscow's latest proposal for ending the war in Ukraine. According to multiple sources, the plan envisions sweeping concessions from Kyiv in exchange for limited Russian withdrawals.

Under the proposal, Russia is insisting on full control of the Donbas region - a historical, cultural and economic region in eastern Ukraine which includes the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk. Moscow is demanding that Ukrainian forces withdraw entirely from the area. In return, Russia has indicated that it would pull back its troops from certain occupied zones in the northeastern Sumy and Kharkiv regions and agree to "freeze" the frontlines in the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. The Russian plan also excludes an immediate ceasefire, instead requiring Ukraine to agree to all of Moscow's conditions before hostilities are suspended.

Beyond Donbas, Mr Putin's proposal also includes demands for official recognition of Russia's sovereignty over Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014, a move that remains unrecognised by much of the international community. Any recognition of the annexation remains strictly off the cards for Kyiv and the majority of Europe.

Moscow is also insisting that Ukraine abandon its pursuit of NATO membership. While Mr Putin has suggested that alternative security guarantees for Ukraine could be discussed, Kyiv views accession to NATO as a key strategic objective for its long-term defence. US President Trump has floated the idea of offering Ukraine a form of collective security outside of NATO, similar in principle to the alliance's Article 5 defence commitment.

Finally, the Kremlin's demands extend beyond territorial and security matters. According to the same sources, Moscow wants official status for the Russian language throughout Ukraine, or at least in parts of its territory, and guarantees that the Moscow-linked Orthodox Church can operate freely. Kyiv, however, has accused the church of spreading pro-Russian propaganda and aiding Moscow's war effort, charges the institution denies. Ukraine recently passed legislation restricting religious organisations with ties to Russia, further complicating this demand.

However, it remains unclear whether President Putin's latest proposal should be considered an opening bid for future negotiations or a non-negotiable offer. Regardless, it places Ukraine in a difficult position.

It will force the country to either relinquish sovereignty over large swaths of its territory, or reject the proposal and prolong the devastating war, which has already claimed the lives of over 170,500 soldiers on both sides as well as Ukrainian civilians as of June 12, according to figures released by Kyiv, UN statistics and open-source data published by Mediazona and BBC Russia.

For Kyiv, the proposal appears almost impossible to accept. Zelensky's government has repeatedly made clear that no territorial concessions are on the table, including Donetsk, which Ukrainian officials view as essential to preventing further Russian incursions deeper into the country.

Russia's position on a ceasefire is also particularly contentious. Ukraine has consistently called for a ceasefire as a starting point for any negotiations, citing the relentless bombardment of its cities by Russian missiles and drones. In the early hours of Monday (August 18), at least seven civilians were killed, including an 18-month-old toddler and a 16-year-old, in a Russian strike on a residential block of flats in Kharkiv, northeast Ukraine. A further attack killed three people and injured dozens in the city of Zaporizhzhia.

Without a suspension of fighting, Zelensky has argued, the credibility of any agreement would be in doubt.

"Russia continues to reject repeated calls for a cease-fire and has not decided when to stop the killing," Zelensky said in a late-night post on X on Saturday (August 16). "If Moscow cannot give a simple order to end the attacks, how can we expect it to commit to something much bigger-peaceful coexistence for decades?"