Russia rejects a freeze of the war — Putin’s demands remain unchanged

Russia has ruled out any freeze to the war in Ukraine unless Moscow’s core demands are met, a senior Russian diplomat said, keeping the Kremlin’s territorial and political aims at the centre of its position.

Russian stance: no freeze without addressing the roots

Mikhail Galuzin, a deputy foreign minister, told the state news agency TASS that Moscow will not agree to freeze the conflict while “the basic causes of the conflict” remain unresolved. "As the Russian president Vladimir Putin repeatedly says, no freeze is possible without removing the roots of this crisis," Galuzin said.

The comments underline that Russia is not prepared to accept a mere cessation of hostilities if it does not secure wider political guarantees and territorial concessions — a position Kyiv has called unacceptable.

Galuzin also accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of "completely losing touch with reality" and blamed Kyiv for escalating the conflict. He singled out recent Ukrainian strikes on targets inside Russia, including energy infrastructure and facilities linked to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), calling those attacks terrorist acts and urging an international response. He specifically pointed at the United States and European countries whose energy firms are shareholders in CPC.

He criticised American military and intelligence support for Ukraine as contradictory to peace efforts and warned that continued backing would speak for itself. "The continuing supply of the regime in Kyiv with American weapons, the provision of intelligence and other assistance speaks for itself," Galuzin said. He also referred to what he described as recent remarks by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and said Moscow raises the issue in contacts with Washington.

Despite rejecting a freeze, Galuzin said Russia remained open to diplomacy and that a political settlement could be possible if there was enough political will and if agreements such as those reached in Anchorage were taken into account. At the same time, other Russian officials have warned that Moscow is preparing for a protracted conflict. Rodion Miroshnik, the special representative of the foreign ministry, recently said Russia should prepare for a long war, and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated in June that Moscow will not accept a ceasefire on the current front line as a precondition for talks, arguing Moscow had been deceived during failed 2022 negotiations.

Kiev has repeatedly offered a freeze along the existing front lines as a basis for talks, while Putin has insisted any settlement would require Kyiv to cede the whole Donetsk region, including areas Russian forces have not captured. President Zelensky has kept seeking direct talks with Putin, including an open letter on June 4 and an offer to meet on the margins of the G7 summit; Putin rejected urgent talks and called a meeting pointless at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Putin also boasted that "Almost one billion square metres of housing have been built in Russia in 10 years." Separately, Zelensky has warned that Russia plans to deploy between 30,000 and 50,000 North Korean soldiers.

Photo: EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY