Putin: "Russian-occupied territories must withdraw from Ukraine to stop the war"

On the 25th, delivered greetings at the 'Primakov Doghoe' meeting
Reiterated the 'Russia Peace Initiative'
Ukraine, effectively surrenders... backlash

Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated on the 25th (local time) that only a ceasefire and peace negotiations under conditions such as the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Russian-occupied territories can stop the war.

According to major local media, President Putin said in a greeting message sent to participants of the 'Primakov Readings,' a diplomatic and security forum held in Moscow that day, "The Russian peace initiative is the path to stop the Ukraine war and move toward a diplomatic resolution."

Vladimir Putin, President of Russia [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Russian peace initiative refers to the ceasefire conditions proposed by President Putin on the 14th. It states that if Ukraine withdraws its troops from Russian-occupied territories within its borders and abandons its NATO membership bid, a ceasefire will be declared and dialogue will commence. This condition was a sudden proposal by Russia, which did not attend the Ukraine Peace Summit held in Wurgenstock, Switzerland, where representatives from 84 countries gathered to discuss ways to end the Ukraine war, announced just one day before the summit's opening. At that time, Ukraine and other countries opposed the proposal, saying it was tantamount to demanding Ukraine's surrender.

In the greeting message read by Kremlin foreign affairs advisor Yuri Ushakov that day, President Putin emphasized, "Unlike Western politicians who do not even consider looking into the essence of our proposal, I am confident that today's forum participants will pay sufficient attention to Russia's proposal." He added, "Participants will be able to see that our proposal actually shows the possibility of stopping the war and transitioning to a political and diplomatic resolution."