Russian chief underscores Kremlin’s hardline stance on peace talks as Trump pushes for deal to finish conflict.
Revealed On 19 Dec 2025
Russian President Vladimir Putin, talking at his extremely choreographed annual question-and-answer session in Moscow, has stated his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy refuses to debate territorial concessions.
The feedback had been made on Friday throughout the “Outcomes of the 12 months” occasion, the place Putin fielded questions from hundreds of thousands of Russians on subjects starting from home coverage to the war.
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Putin’s remarks are the newest in a drumbeat of often-repeated maximalist Russian positions practically 4 years after he ordered troops into the neighbouring nation, as United States President Donald Trump intensifies diplomatic efforts to dealer a peace deal between Moscow and Kyiv.
The difficulty of territory gained, misplaced, to be ceded or not, delves into the guts of the matter on one of the vital contentious points within the talks to finish the conflict thus far.
“We all know from statements from Zelenskyy that he’s not ready to debate territory points,” Putin informed attendees on the occasion within the capital’s Gostiny Dvor exhibition corridor. Zelenskyy has certainly said that clearly, however Ukraine’s structure additionally forbids the ceding of land.
Putin has demanded Ukraine cede all territory in 4 key areas his forces have captured and occupied, together with Crimea, which Moscow seized and annexed in 2014.
He additionally needs Ukrainian troops to withdraw from elements of jap Ukraine that Russian forces haven’t but taken within the jap Donetsk area, the place combating stays attritional – situations Kyiv has rejected outright.
Putin projected confidence about battlefield progress, saying Russian forces had “totally seized strategic initiative” and would make additional positive aspects earlier than the 12 months ends.
Moscow’s bigger military has made regular advances in latest months, seizing between 12 and 17 sq. kilometres (4.5 and 6.6 sq. miles) each day in 2025, based on Western assessments.
The Russian president additionally attacked Western dealing with of frozen Russian belongings, labelling plans to make use of them for Ukraine as “theft” quite than theft as a result of it was being completed brazenly.
“No matter they stole, they’ll have to present it again sometime,” he stated, pledging to pursue authorized motion in courts he described as “impartial of political selections”.
European Union leaders agreed to provide a hefty $105bn interest-free loan to Ukraine to fulfill its army and financial wants in its conflict with Russia for the subsequent two years, EU Council President Antonio Costa stated.
The leaders determined early on Friday to borrow money on capital markets to fund Ukraine’s defence in opposition to Russia quite than use frozen Russian belongings, diplomats stated.
The annual occasion, which Putin has held in numerous codecs since 2001, drew about three million questions from Russians through cellphone, textual content and on-line platforms. A synthetic intelligence system processed the queries to establish widespread themes.
Putin’s feedback come at a pivotal second, and are watched intently by Western officers who will need to get a learn on how he intends to current the scenario on the bottom to the Russian public.
Trump has launched a significant diplomatic push to finish practically 4 years of combating, however negotiations have stalled over sharply conflicting calls for from Moscow and Kyiv.
US officers estimate that Russia and Ukraine have suffered greater than two million casualties since Moscow launched its invasion in February 2022. Neither facet discloses dependable loss figures.
