Putin threatens to seize Donbas and other Ukrainian regions 'by any means'
Russian President Vladimir Putin (photo: Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia will seize Donbas by any means, as well as the southern and eastern regions of Ukraine, according to a statement by Putin cited by Russian media.
The Russian president cynically stated that Moscow had proposed that Ukraine "withdraw its troops from Donbas and not start military actions," but that "Kyiv chose to fight."
"Russia will in any case 'liberate' Donbas and Novorossiya — by military or other means," Putin said.
The Russian president uses the word "Novorossiya" to refer to the southern and eastern regions of Ukraine.
Talks on the US peace plan
In November, the United States presented a new peace plan for ending the war in Ukraine. The initial version included 28 points, but they were later reduced.
On November 23 and 30, consultations were held between the US and Ukrainian delegations to finalize the document and make it more favorable for Kyiv.
The first meeting took place in Geneva, the second in Florida.
On December 2, US special envoy Steve Witkoff and US President's son-in-law Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow to discuss the revised document with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
After the meeting, Putin's aide, Yuri Ushakov, stated that no compromise had yet been reached, but the sides were ready to continue working.
He also reported that the American delegation had delivered four more documents concerning the end of the war.
Ushakov's wording was interpreted as a rejection of the US peace plan by Putin. However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed the next day that this was supposedly not the case.
According to the Associated Press, Witkoff and Kushner will already hold a new meeting today, December 4, with the head of the Ukrainian negotiating delegation, Rustem Umerov.
