No compromise with Ukraine, Putin indicates to U.S. envoys during talks

Vladimir Putin indicated on Thursday (November 12, 2026) that Russia will not compromise on its hardline demands to end the Ukraine offensive but offered a short-term ceasefire in a key frontline city in Donetsk during a Kremlin meeting with U.S.

envoys. The Russian President said he would not water down his territorial demands to control parts of Ukraine that Russia claims to have annexed and ruled out agreeing to foreign peacekeeping troops being stationed in Ukraine — a deployment that he said would be a “continuation of war”.

Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff were in Moscow after two days of talks in Abu Dhabi searching for a way to end Europe’s worst conflict since the Second World War. Mr. Putin’s comments appeared to douse hopes that a deal to end the war could be within grasp, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said there was a “window of opportunity” to achieve “a result” before 2027.

The Americans, meanwhile, urged Mr. Putin to allow European representatives to sit at the table for the next round of talks. Moscow has successfully managed to reframe the discussions on the war as part of a wider discussion about European security.

But Kyiv and European leaders have urged against a new “Yalta” — a reference to the post-Second World War deal to carve the continent into spheres of influence — and said talks must be focused on ending the Ukraine war first.

Mr. Kushner and Mr. Witkoff will travel to Dublin, where a European summit is taking place, to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later on Thursday. Usually held behind closed doors, the Kremlin chose to televise a lengthy opening exchange between Mr.

Putin and the U.S. envoys. The Russian leader also rejected talk of a possible territorial settlement involving “grey” — or demilitarised — zones between Ukrainian and Russian positions.