Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Ukraine to accelerate peace negotiations and accept Moscow’s terms from previous Istanbul talks, warning that Ukraine’s position would deteriorate if talks are postponed.
The Russian leader indicated Moscow is ready to resume peace discussions in Istanbul after 22 June, noting that negotiating teams from both countries maintain ongoing contact, according to Russian state-funded news agency RIA Novosti.
During Istanbul peace talks on 16 May, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky reportedly told the Ukrainian delegation that Russia is prepared to fight for “a year, two, three—however long it takes,” invoking Russia’s historical 21-year war with Sweden to emphasize its willingness for prolonged conflict.
Despite Russia’s claim of not wanting war, Medinsky warned that some participants might lose more loved ones and that Russia is ready to fight indefinitely.
Independent estimates as of mid-May 2025 indicate Russia suffered heavy military losses, including over 10,800 tanks and nearly 1 million casualties, which contrasts with Medinsky’s “forever war” rhetoric.
During the June negotiations, Ukraine and Russia exchanged position papers outlining their respective visions for ending the war.
Russian demands include:
- Ukrainian military withdrawal from four occupied regions (some parts of which are not even occupied fully) – Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.
- written guarantees from Western leaders to halt “NATO’s eastward expansion”, effectively excluding Ukraine, Georgia, and other former Soviet states from membership
- Ukraine adopting a neutral status and limitations on Ukraine’s armed forces.
- partial lifting of Western sanctions
- resolution of frozen Russian assets abroad
- protections for Russian speakers in Ukraine.
Ukraine rejected these demands, insisting on its sovereign right to choose alliances and strong Western security guarantees.
In contrast, Ukraine presented its own ceasefire proposals, including:
- complete cessation of hostilities
- return of deported children and prisoner exchanges
- security assurances
- rejection of any forced neutrality or restrictions on its military capabilities and alliances, including NATO membership
- direct talks between Zelenskyy and Putin
- international community involvement while maintaining Ukrainian sovereignty.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) concluded that any peace agreement modeled on the 2022 Istanbul protocols would equate to Ukraine’s capitulation to Russia’s strategic objectives.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha declared that Russia’s rhetoric in 2025 intensified to 2022 levels and aims to weaken Ukraine militarily and politically to eventually destroy the state and exploit its resources.