Putin Reaffirms Aim To Seize Donbas “By Military Or Other Means” As Ukrainian Envoys Head To U.S. Talks

Putin Repeats Territorial Demand Ahead Of Diplomatic Moves

Russian President Vladimir Putin told India Today that Moscow intends to seize Ukraine’s Donbas region “by military or other means,” reiterating one of his core demands as Ukrainian officials prepare to hold separate talks with U.S. counterparts. Putin made the comments ahead of a summit in New Delhi with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, coming two days after he hosted a U.S. delegation at the Kremlin.

Kremlin Meeting With U.S. Delegation

Putin described the Kremlin meeting with a U.S. delegation led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and attended by Jared Kushner — President Donald Trump’s son-in-law — as a lengthy session in which both sides “went through each point of the peace proposals,” according to the Russian state news agency TASS. Putin said Moscow disagreed with parts of the U.S. proposal but called negotiating a “difficult task.”

“We will liberate Donbas and Novorossiya in any case — by military or other means,” Putin told India Today, as reported by TASS.

What Moscow Is Demanding

One of the Kremlin’s principal conditions for any settlement is Ukrainian concessions of territory in the Donbas — territory Russia has declared annexed but has not fully controlled. Putin has also revived the historical term Novorossiya (New Russia), a phrase tied to imperial-era geography that he previously used when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

Prospects For Compromise

As Moscow doubles down on territorial demands that Kyiv rejects, prospects for compromise appear increasingly uncertain. The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) estimates that, at the current pace of operations, Russian forces would capture the entire Donetsk region only by August 2027.

Follow-Up Talks In The U.S.

Ukrainian officials — including Rustem Umerov, head of Kyiv’s negotiating delegation, and Andrii Hnatov, the chief of Ukraine’s general staff — are traveling to Miami for talks with U.S. officials to review the outcomes of the Moscow discussions, an adviser to Ukraine’s presidential office said. These talks follow the leak last November of a 28-point plan reportedly drafted by the Trump administration; several provisions in that draft were widely seen as concessions to Moscow and were previously rejected by Ukrainian and many European officials.

Responses And Context

Former President Trump described the U.S. delegation’s meeting with Putin as “very good” and suggested Putin “would like to see the war ended,” though he acknowledged there was no breakthrough. Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said some U.S. proposals were “more or less acceptable” while others “do not suit us,” per TASS. U.S. and Ukrainian officials have been guarded about any concrete progress from this round of diplomacy.

Reporting by multiple outlets; quotes attributed to TASS and statements described by U.S. and Ukrainian officials. The Institute for the Study of War provided the operational timeline estimate cited above.