Russia said Friday it will continue its war in Ukraine until territorial issues are resolved, following more than three hours of late-night talks in the Kremlin between President Vladimir Putin and a US delegation.
The delegation included US special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and White House adviser Josh Gruenbaum.
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The talks were “exceptionally substantive” and “extremely frank,” Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told RIA Novosti, but he made clear that Moscow sees no path to a ceasefire without agreement on territory.
“Without resolving the territorial issue, it would be unrealistic to expect a long-term settlement,” Ushakov said, referring to a framework discussed in Anchorage.
Spinning the same worn-out Kremlin record, Ushakov once again insisted that Moscow seeks a diplomatic solution – but until a peace deal is reached, it will continue pursuing its objectives militarily.
“Until that happens, Russia will continue to achieve the goals of the special military operation on the battlefield,” he said, citing Putin.
Ushakov said US negotiators shared their “first-hand impressions and fresh assessments” of a recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, held in Davos.
Moscow also repeatedly raised the possibility of using frozen Russian assets as part of a future settlement. Russia is ready to allocate $1 billion to a Board of Peace created by Trump, Ushakov said, with remaining funds potentially directed to reconstruction “after a peace treaty is concluded.”
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Following the talks, Ushakov said Russia and the United States agreed to convene the first meeting of a trilateral Russia-US-Ukraine security working group later Friday in Abu Dhabi.
The Kremlin has repeatedly demanded the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from all of the Donbas, including areas Russia has not been able to conquer in 12 years of trying, as a condition for ending hostilities. Ukrainian officials have rejected the demand, saying territorial issues cannot be decided under military pressure or outside international law.
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