Russia has signalled its three key demands for a deal to end its war and reset relations with Washington following positive negotiations between Ukraine and the US
Russia has presented the US with a list of key demands in order to secure any form of ceasefire deal and end its bloody invasion of Ukraine.
Moscow has signalled its conditions for a deal to end its war against Ukraine and reset relations with Washington, according to two people familiar with the matter. The exact details Russia are likely to include have not yet been disclosed. It also not been discussed whether Moscow is willing to told peace talks with Kyiv. It comes as Vladimir Putin has rejected Donald Trump’s temporary ceasefire deal in Ukraine.
But the two sources claimed Russian and American officials have discussed terms during in-person and virtual conversations over the last three weeks. They described the Kremlin’s terms as broad and similar to demands it previously has presented to Ukraine, the US and NATO.
The three earlier terms include denying Ukraine’s membership of Nato, an agreement not to deploy foreign troops in Ukraine and international recognition of President Vladimir Putin’s claim that Crimea and four provinces belong to Russia. In recent years, Moscow demanded the US and NATO address what it has called the “root causes” of the war – including NATO’s eastward expansion.
Following the latest instalment of negotiations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky hailed “constructive” talks between his and the President’s teams. The Ukrainian President was careful to emphasise his thanks during a meeting with the press, having been chastised by US Vice President JD Vance for not being “thankful” enough during an extraordinary exchange at the White House just weeks ago.
US president Donald Trump did not say when he would next speak to his Russian counterpart. However, he added: “I hope he’s going to have a ceasefire. It’s up to Russia now. I’ve gotten some positive messages, but a positive message means nothing. This is a very serious situation, it could start World War Three.” Hours later. the firebrand president appeared to suggested he could target Russia financially as Ukraine’s president urged him to take strong steps
It comes after Vladimir Putin issued a chilling order to the Russian Army, urging troops to “finally defeat the enemy” – and in turn posing a threat to peace negotiations with Ukraine as they have barely begun. The Russian despot was seen in military fatigues at a Kursk region command post this week in a rare military appearance suggesting his desire to continue hostilities.
It came a matter of hours after Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine is ready to seek peace. Putin vowed to treat hundreds of Ukrainian troops captured in Kursk region as “terrorists”, potentially jailing them for decades, and not as prisoners of war who can be exchanged.
Meanwhile, Warsaw – worried about the Kremlin’s continued threat – revealed on Thursday that it requested the US base nuclear weapons on its territory. President Andrzej Duda made the request while insisting Ukraine’s infrastructure should follow its expansion east, after Russia installed its own “wonder weapon” in Belarus, a Kremlin client state.
