As diplomatic efforts to mend strained US-Russia relations continue, the Kremlin has made it clear that returning annexed Ukrainian territories will not be part of any future peace deal.
On Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov set a firm red line, stating that the regions Russia claims to have annexed are now “an inseparable part” of the country and are “non-negotiable.”
The remarks came as Russian and US officials met in Istanbul for a fresh round of discussions aimed at normalizing relations. The high-stakes meeting follows a similar diplomatic effort in Saudi Arabia earlier this month and marks a significant shift in US foreign policy under President Donald Trump, who took office just last month.
Unlike his predecessor, Trump has advocated for a swift resolution to the ongoing three-year war in Ukraine, engaging directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin acknowledged that the new US-Russia contacts provided “some hope” for resolving the conflict. However, he reaffirmed that Russia would not consider relinquishing control over the territories it now claims as part of its federation.
In 2022, following its full-scale invasion, Russia declared the annexation of four Ukrainian regions—Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson—adding them to Crimea, which it seized in 2014. While Moscow maintains that these regions are now Russian territory, Ukraine and most of the international community reject the annexations as illegal.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhy dismissed the Kremlin’s stance, reaffirming that Ukraine’s borders are “internationally recognized” and criticizing Russia’s justification of the annexations using its own constitution.
While Russian forces maintain control over most of Donetsk and Luhansk, they only partially occupy Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Additionally, Moscow has taken control of parts of Kharkiv, while Ukrainian forces have advanced into Russia’s Kursk region.
Despite the ongoing fighting, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has acknowledged the military challenges in reclaiming occupied territories, leaving the door open for diplomatic solutions. However, while Zelensky has hinted at a potential exchange of territory, Russia has completely ruled out such negotiations.