Media: Putin demanded Ukraine to give up Donbass, NATO and Western troops

Putin put forward tough conditions for Ukraine: renunciation of Donbas and NATO, neutral status and ban on Western troops

Reuters reports this, citing informed sources in the Kremlin.

According to the sources, the President of Russia and US President Donald Trump discussed possible compromise solutions to the Ukrainian conflict during a closed three-hour meeting.

The agency emphasizes that the Ukrainian side categorically rejects the conditions put forward, regarding them as a demand for complete capitulation.

Sources clarify that in the updated proposal, the Russian leader continues to insist on the complete withdrawal of Ukrainian armed forces from the Donbas territories controlled by Kyiv. In return, Moscow promises to stop military operations in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.

According to the information received, as part of a potential agreement, Russia is also ready to return to Ukraine's control the occupied parts of Kharkiv, Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk regions.

In addition, Putin does not back down from previously voiced demands: Ukraine must abandon its aspiration to join NATO, a legally binding agreement must be concluded to stop the alliance's eastern expansion, the size of the Ukrainian army must be limited, and the deployment of Western troops on Ukrainian territory, even as part of peacekeeping forces, must be prohibited.