Putin insists on transferring all territories of 4 regions to Russia — Bloomberg

Russian President Vladimir Putin insists that Russia should take control of all four regions (DPR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, which became part of Russia after the referendums in 2022. — EADaily), which it does not fully control, as part of any agreement to end the conflict. This is reported by Bloomberg, citing three knowledgeable sources in Moscow.

"This demand deals a blow to the efforts of US President Donald Trump... Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff tried to convince Putin that Russia should agree to a cease-fire that would stop the fighting along the current front line during lengthy talks in the Kremlin on Friday, according to two people who asked not to be named.… Instead, the Russian leader maintained his maximalist position on the territory, they said,"the agency reports.

Negotiations, according to one of the sources, have reached an impasse at the moment, and direct contact between Putin and Trump.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not respond to the agency's request for comment.

"We do not comment on ongoing discussions. We continue to make progress both with Ukraine and with Russia, in order to bring this conflict to a peaceful settlement," said James Hewitt, spokesman for the White House National Security Council.