Putin declared readiness for negotiations with the US on condition of Ukraine's complete surrender – ISW

Putin. Photo: Getty Images

Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared his readiness to negotiate with the United States regarding the war in Ukraine, but has put forward an ultimatum – the complete surrender of Ukraine.

Source: ISW

Putin reportedly called a meeting of the Russian Security Council on January 20, at which he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reaffirmed Russia's readiness for peace talks with the new administration of US President Donald Trump.

Putin stressed that any peaceful settlement must be based on “eliminating the root causes” of the conflict, which he said includes meeting Russia’s tough demands.

“Senior Kremlin officials, including Putin and Lavrov, have repeatedly stressed in recent weeks that the Kremlin refuses to consider any compromises on Putin’s demands, put forward in late 2021 and early 2022. These demands include permanent “neutral” status for Ukraine, non-admission to NATO, strict limits on the size of the Ukrainian army, and the removal of the Ukrainian government from power.”

Putin also stated that in 2021, then-US President Joe Biden proposed postponing Ukraine's accession to NATO for 10-15 years, but even that did not prevent the Russian invasion, which, he said, was "inevitable due to NATO's actions."