Kyiv rejects Putin's demand for more Ukrainian land to end war

It says it equates to surrender; Moscow shows growing confidence its forces have upper hand

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MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin said on June 14 that Russia would end the war in Ukraine only if Kyiv agreed to drop its Nato ambitions and hand over the entirety of four provinces claimed by Moscow, demands Kyiv swiftly rejected as tantamount to surrender.

On the eve of a conference in Switzerland to which Russia has not been invited, Mr Putin set out maximalist conditions wholly at odds with the terms demanded by Ukraine, apparently reflecting Moscow's growing confidence that its forces have the upper hand in the war.

The Russian leader restated his demand for Ukraine's demilitarisation unchanged from the day he sent in his troops on Feb 24, 2022 and said an end to Western sanctions must also be part of a peace deal.

He also repeated his call for Ukraine's "denazification", based on what Kyiv calls an unfounded slur against its leadership.

Ukraine said the conditions were "absurd".

"He is offering for Ukraine to admit defeat," Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters.

"He is offering for Ukraine to legally give up its territories to Russia. He is offering for Ukraine to sign away its geopolitical sovereignty," he added.