Putin's latest conditions for peace in Ukraine: Give up Donbas, NATO, and Western troops

(Patria) - Russian President Vladimir Putin demands that Ukraine give up all of Donbas, abandon its desire to join NATO, remain neutral, and not allow Western troops into the country.

This was reported by Reuters, citing three sources familiar with the thinking of top Kremlin officials.

As a reminder, Putin met with US President Donald Trump on Friday in Alaska at the first Russian-American summit in more than four years.

The nearly three-hour meeting discussed what a peace deal for Ukraine might look like, anonymous sources told Reuters.

After the meeting with Trump, Putin said he hoped it was a big step towards a deal, but neither leader revealed details of their conversation.

Putin's Conditions

• Ukraine must cede the entire Donbas region (Donetsk and Luhansk);
• Ukraine must abandon NATO membership;
• Ukraine must remain neutral;
• Ukraine must ban the presence of Western troops on its territory.

Reuters is now revealing the outlines of what the Kremlin would like to see in a possible peace agreement to end the war.

Russian sources said Putin had compromised on territorial demands he made in June 2024, which required Kyiv to cede four provinces that Moscow considers part of Russia: Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine - which make up Donbas - plus Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south.

Putin's 'Compromises'

• Will halt the front line in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions;
• Will return small occupied parts of the Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk regions.

Kyiv rejected these demands, calling it a complete surrender.

In his new proposal, the Russian president stands by his demands that Ukraine completely withdraw from parts of Donbas that it still holds.

In return, Moscow would freeze the front line in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson and abandon advances to the south.

Sources say that as part of a possible agreement, Moscow is also prepared to hand over small parts of the Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk regions of Ukraine that it controls.

Putin also adheres to previous demands that Ukraine abandon its NATO membership ambitions, as well as restrictions on the Ukrainian military and an agreement that no Western troops will be deployed on the ground in Ukraine as part of peacekeeping forces.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not yet commented on these proposals.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly rejected the idea of withdrawing from internationally recognized Ukrainian territory as part of an agreement, adding that Donbas serves as a fortress preventing further Russian advances into Ukraine.

"If we talk about withdrawal from the east, we cannot do that. It is a matter of our country's survival, which includes the strongest defense lines," Kyiv stated.

Zelensky also added that it is not up to Russia to decide on NATO membership.

Neither the White House nor NATO have yet commented on the Russian proposals.

Russian forces currently control about a fifth of Ukraine, an area roughly the size of the US state of Ohio.

Sources close to the Kremlin emphasize that the summit in Alaska was the best opportunity for peace since the beginning of the war because concrete discussions about Russian conditions were held, and Putin also showed a willingness to concede.

One of these sources said the message conveyed to Trump was a message of compromise, that Putin is ready for peace.

Sources warned that it is unclear to Moscow whether Ukraine will be willing to cede the rest of Donbas and that the war will continue if it does not.

It is also unclear whether the United States will recognize the Ukrainian territory held by Russia, they added.