Putin’s conditions for ending war include no NATO membership for Ukraine, partial lifting of sanctions — Reuters
That is according to Reuters, which cites three Russian sources, as reported by Ukrinform.
"Putin is ready to make peace but not at any price," said one senior Russian source with knowledge of top-level Kremlin thinking, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The three Russian sources said Putin wants a "written" pledge by major Western powers not to enlarge the U.S.-led NATO alliance eastwards - shorthand for formally ruling out membership to Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova and other former Soviet republics.
Russia also wants Ukraine to be neutral, some Western sanctions lifted, a resolution of the issue of frozen Russian sovereign assets in the West, and “protection” for Russian speakers in Ukraine.
The first source said that, if Putin realizes he is unable to reach a peace deal on his own terms, he will seek to show the Ukrainians and the Europeans by military victories that "peace tomorrow will be even more painful".
The publication stressed that Kyiv has repeatedly said that Russia should not be granted veto power over its aspirations to join the NATO alliance. Ukraine says it needs the West to give it a strong security guarantee with teeth to deter any future Russian attack.
NATO has also in the past said that it will not change its "open door" policy just because Moscow demands it.
The first source told Reuters said that if Putin saw a tactical opportunity on the battlefield, he would push further into Ukraine - and that the Kremlin believed Russia could fight on for years no matter what sanctions and economic pain were imposed by the West.
A second source said that Putin was now less inclined to compromise on territory and was sticking to his public stance that he wanted the entirety of four regions in eastern Ukraine claimed by Russia.
"Putin has toughened his position," the second source said of the question of territory.
As earlier reported by Ukrinform, after the latest wave of large-scale Russian attacks on Ukraine, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Russian leader Vladimir Putin has “gone absolutely crazy” for killing people without cause.
According to The Wall Street Journal, citing informed sources, Trump is considering imposing sanctions on Russia this week, expressing frustration over continued Russian attacks and the slow progress of peace talks.
Meanwhile, on the morning of May 28, unidentified UAVs targeted a drone manufacturing facility in Russia’s Moscow region.
