Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would end his offensive in Ukraine if Kyiv withdrew from territories claimed by Moscow. Otherwise, Russian troops will take it by force.
The Russian army has been moving slowly but steadily through eastern Ukraine in battle against outnumbered and outgunned Ukrainian forces.
“If Ukrainian troops leave the territories they control, then we will stop combat operations,” Putin said during a visit to Kyrgyzstan, according to the news agency AFP And Al-ArabiyaFriday (28/11/2025).
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“If not, then we will achieve it by military means,” added Putin.
Meanwhile, Washington has renewed its efforts to end the nearly four-year war, putting forward a plan it hopes to finalize through upcoming talks with Moscow and Kyiv.
Russia controls about a fifth of Ukraine’s territory. The issue of occupied territories, which Kyiv says will never be ceded, is one of the biggest obstacles to the peace process.
Another important issue in the talks is Western security guarantees for Ukraine, which Kyiv says are necessary to prevent Moscow from invading again in the future.
Washington’s initial plan — drawn up without input from Ukraine’s European allies — would have seen Kyiv withdraw from the Donetsk region, while the United States de facto recognized the Donetsk, Crimea and Luhansk regions as Russian territory.
However, the US changed the initial plan at the weekend after criticism from Kyiv and Europe, but has not yet released an updated version.
Putin, who has seen the new plan, said it could be the start of negotiations.
“Overall, we agree that this plan could be the basis for a future agreement,” he said of the latest draft, which the US is estimated to have shortened by about 20 points.
US negotiator Steve Witkoff is scheduled to be in Moscow next week to discuss the revised document, Putin said.
Meanwhile, US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is scheduled to visit Kyiv this weekend, Ukrainian presidential adviser Andriy Yermak said.
Also watch the video “Putin’s Threat about Russian Assets Potentially Confiscated in Europe”
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(eng/ita)
