Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday sent an unmistakable signal that he is not prepared to give ground on any of his key demands, as US President Donald Trump steps up efforts to broker a peace deal.
Speaking pugnaciously as American and European leaders rush to broker a peace deal, Putin denounced Ukraine’s European allies and said Russia would capture territory through force if it had to.
“We would prefer to operate in this way – and remove the causes of the conflict at the root through diplomatic means,” Putin said at the Russian Defense Ministry’s annual meeting.
“If the adversary country and the foreign patrons are unwilling to engage in a real dialogue, then Russia will liberate its historical lands using military means,” he said. (He was speaking about regions that he is demanding Ukraine cede, a critical and controversial sticking point in the ongoing peace talks.)
This question of territory and security guarantees for Ukraine has become hard to solve in the peace talks, revealing that the competing priorities of Ukraine, the United States and Europe collide with those of Russia.
🚨【Putin Rejects Trump’s Peace Push: No Compromise on Ukraine Land】
Putin vows no retreat on demanding Ukrainian territory, despite Trump’s peace efforts. He prefers diplomacy but warns Russia will take “historical lands” by force if needed. #Ukraine #Russia #Putin #Trump pic.twitter.com/ue3m6Qrcv1— NewsBreath (@JeffreyKabos) December 18, 2025
Russia has illegally annexed a portion of Ukraine, Donbas, but has not taken full control of it. At its current pace of advance, Russia could not take over the whole region until August 2027, according to an analysis by the Institute for the Study of War, a United States conflict monitor.
” Kyiv not to recognize part of Donbas as Russian Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that Kyiv would not consider the temporarily occupied areas of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region as legally or de facto Russian.
The Ukrainian president also seemed to allude to the “historical lands” remark that Putin included in his address Wednesday night. “There are other countries in Europe that there may be someone in Russia one day call his ‘historical lands,’” Zelensky cautioned. “We want real protection from this Russian history of insanity.”
Trump has remained bullish about his chances of securing a peace deal, declaring this week that “we’re closer now than we ever have been.”
More cautious have been Ukraine’s European allies, who offended him by seeking robust security guarantees for the country.
Putin went to great lengths to underline that difference in his speech. Russia was “in a dialogue with the US,” but under current leadership, there is little prospects of a meaningful engagement with Europe on peace, he said.
“I very much wish a similar situation (engagement) will happen with Europe,” Putin said.
I doubt this is doable with our current political elites, but meanwhile it will simply become necessary as we go stronger. If not with the politicians that exist, then when there are new elites in Europe,” he added.
Putin’s defiant remarks preceded a major summit in Brussels this week during which European leaders will discuss whether to use frozen Russian assets to pay for Ukraine.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized the need for a deal in her address to the European Parliament on Wednesday, while urging the continent to take responsibility for its own security and maintain funding Ukraine’s defense against Russia.
“There is no greater act of European defense than assisting Ukraine’s defense. The next days are an essential move towards that. How we finance the fight in Ukraine is up to us,” said von der Leyen.
Two European proposals for funding Ukraine are in play — one a drawing down of the frozen assets, and the other a loan.
