“Give up Donbas”: The Kremlin claims the territorial dispute with Kyiv amounts to just a few kilometers
12 April 16:15
The territorial dispute between Russia and Ukraine amounts to approximately 17–18 percent of the territory of Donetsk Oblast, which Moscow does not yet control.
This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" citing DW.
Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov made this statement on Sunday, April 12, commenting on remarks by U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance regarding “a few square kilometers” of territorial dispute. Russian troops, Peskov added, continue to advance.
According to data cited by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in March, Kyiv retained control of about 15–17 percent of the territory of the self-proclaimed “Donetsk People’s Republic”—down from 25 percent roughly six months earlier. In August 2025, Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov reported that Russian troops had taken control of 79% of the territory of the unrecognized DPR. In March of that same year, Putin had cited a figure of 70 percent.
Russia’s Conditions
Russia has repeatedly stated its readiness for a peaceful settlement, linking it to the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from the entire territory of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions, which Moscow considers its territory following the 2022 “referendums.” Achieving a lasting peace in Ukraine, according to Peskov, will be possible only after Russia’s interests are secured and its objectives are met.
“Until Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ‘can muster the courage to take on this responsibility,’ Russia’s war against its neighboring country ‘will continue,'” he emphasized.
Zelenskyy previously stated that he considers discussions of territorial concessions impossible. According to him, the transfer of Donbas to Russia is “out of the question” due to the strategic risks for Ukraine.
Budanov: The war will end soon
At the same time, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kirill Budanov, stated in an interview with Bloomberg published on April 10 that both sides of the conflict want it to end. “They all understand that the war must end. That is why they are negotiating. I don’t think it will take long,” he said.
According to Budanov, the sides are gradually moving away from “maximalist” positions and are converging in their search for a compromise. At the same time, he declined to specify what a solution regarding Donbas that would satisfy both sides might look like. Budanov cited the financial costs of the war as one of the factors pushing Moscow toward peace: according to him, Russia is financing the hostilities with its own funds, and the figure is already in the “trillions.”
