More than three years into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has maintained rigid, maximalist conditions for any potential agreement to end the war.

Putin said on Thursday he supports the idea of a 30-day ceasefire – proposed by the United States and agreed to by Ukraine – but noted that its implementation raises many questions, particularly regarding verification along the lengthy front line. This tactic could allow Russia to engage in prolonged negotiations without outright rejecting the offer.

Putin also said the 30-day reprieve could be used by Ukraine to regroup and rearm, hinting that he would seek to impose his own conditions, such as halting Western weapons supplies or banning mobilization.

However, Moscow’s demands remain far from what Ukraine or its allies would likely accept.

Here is what Russia has stated about the conditions needed for a peace deal.

Territory

Three years into the war, Russia controls about one-fifth of Ukraine and seeks to keep that territory – and more. The Kremlin has ruled out ceding any land it has seized.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, “Crimea, Sevastopol, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk – these are regions of Russia. They are written into the constitution. This is a given fact.”

Russia annexed Crimea, including Sevastopol, in 2014, although it remains internationally recognized as part of Ukraine. It illegally annexed the other regions Peskov mentioned in 2022.

In June, Putin said Russia would immediately stop hostilities if Ukraine surrendered four southeastern regions that Russian troops partially occupied and renounced plans to join NATO. Putin also wants Russia’s land grab recognized as legitimate.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has long emphasized that Ukraine would not surrender sovereign territory but has recently shifted focus to security guarantees rather than the immediate return of land.

Russia’s terms also include demilitarizing Ukraine, leaving it with a small army incapable of deterring future attacks.

NATO peacekeepers

To justify his aggression in Ukraine, Putin cited the possibility of further NATO expansion. Ukrainian membership in NATO – a defense alliance requiring member states to defend fellow members if attacked – is a nonstarter for Putin.

Zelenskyy, however, sees NATO membership as a key security guarantee. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last month that NATO membership was not a “realistic outcome.” In later remarks, he did not rule out the possibility entirely but acknowledged the “hard-power realities on the ground.”

NATO has expanded since the war began, with Sweden and Finland joining. However, the U.S. commitment to the alliance has come into question under Trump.

In his 2024 state of the nation address, Putin warned of “tragic consequences” if NATO forces were ever deployed to Ukraine. He also threatened retaliatory attacks on the West if it attacked Russia. “All this really threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and the destruction of civilization,” he said. “Don’t they get that?”

During the war, Russia has framed itself as fighting an existential battle against the “collective West” because of NATO’s support for Kyiv.

The Kremlin has ruled out the presence of foreign peacekeepers in Ukraine – a proposal European nations have considered as a potential security guarantee.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that Russia would not accept “involvement in the conflict” by other countries, warning that it would prompt “Moscow to react with all means.”

European countries, including Britain and France, have suggested sending thousands of troops to Ukraine after fighting ends. Earlier this week, Russia reiterated it would not accept NATO peacekeeping troops on Ukrainian territory “under any conditions,” rejecting a proposal floated by French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

“Why should we give consent to a peacekeeping force … if they want a force composed of countries that have declared us an enemy, and they would come as peacekeepers?” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov asked in an interview on Wednesday with pro-Kremlin U.S. bloggers.

Diplomatic missions

Russia has used renewed contacts with the United States to address issues beyond the war in Ukraine, including long-standing grievances over frozen diplomatic compounds dating back to the Obama administration.

Talks between Russia and the United States in Istanbul on Feb. 27 focused on the status of each side’s diplomatic missions, which have been significantly reduced due to rounds of expulsions and staffing restrictions.

Russia demanded the return of six diplomatic compounds it said were seized illegally by the United States between 2016 and 2018. These include buildings in New York and Maryland frozen by the Obama administration, as well as consulates in Seattle and San Francisco that the Trump administration shut down due to their proximity to sensitive sites, including Silicon Valley, a submarine base and Boeing facilities.

Washington raised concerns about access to banking and contracted services and the need to ensure stable staffing levels at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. The State Department said that “through constructive discussions, both sides identified concrete initial steps to stabilize bilateral mission operations in these areas.”

Shortly after the meeting, Moscow announced it had received credentials from Washington to appoint a new ambassador, Alexander Darchiev.

Sanctions relief

U.S. sanctions imposed by the Biden administration after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 have weakened the Russian economy and hindered its military sector. Trump has signaled a willingness to discuss easing sanctions as part of a potential peace deal.

Publicly, the Kremlin insists all sanctions are illegal and must be lifted. Privately, however, Moscow would welcome any relief, as it would undermine Western unity in enforcing economic restrictions, analysts say.

Russia is particularly interested in lifting restrictions on transnational payments and the sale of gas and oil, especially recent curbs on its oil tanker fleet.

One of the most significant measures Russia faced was the freezing of more than $300 billion in Russian central bank assets held in the West. Last year, the European Union adopted a plan to use the interest generated from these frozen assets to support Ukraine.

Putin condemned this strategy as “theft.” Paris has proposed using the assets as collateral, allowing them to be seized if Moscow violates a ceasefire agreement.

In talks in Istanbul in February, Russia pushed for the resumption of direct flights to the United States, which would mark a significant easing of sanctions. The State Department did not mention this issue in its statement on the discussions.