Russian President Vladimir Putin is reportedly demanding land that Moscow does not currently occupy as a condition to end the war in Ukraine, potentially complicating peace efforts further.
Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that the four regions in question are Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Russia staged referendums in the four regions months after the invasion and Putin said they would be "forever" part of Russia following the results, not recognized by the vast majority of the international community. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called them a "violation of the UN Charter and international law."
Moscow has not fully seized all regions, but the outlet detailed that Putin wants them in full as one of his conditions to end the war. Trump envoy Steve Witkoff sought to persuade him to agree on a ceasefire along the current frontlines, but Putin stood firmly by his demands, Bloomberg added, quoting people familiar with the issue.
The Trump administration said it's willing to walk away from talks if an agreement is not announced soon. But Trump changed his tune on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after meeting him at the Vatican during the funeral of Pope Francis, directing his latest criticism to Putin rather than him.
In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump said Russia's recent attacks, which killed several civilians, made him think that Putin "maybe doesn't want to stop the war, he's just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through 'Banking' or 'Secondary Sanctions?'"
While in the Vatican, Trump and Zelensky were captured facing one another for a conversation—their first one-on-one since their contentious Oval Office meeting in February in which Zelensky was berated for "disrespect" as the Ukrainian president cautioned skepticism toward Putin's interest in peace.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not immediately respond to Bloomberg's request for comment on the report, while U.S. National Security Council Spokesman James Hewitt said "we continue to make progress with both Ukraine and Russia to bring this conflict to a peaceful resolution."
Originally published on Latin Times
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