Vladimir Putin warns Ukraine may resume if Kyiv fails to recognize the controversial 2022 referenda held in four partially occupied regions. In an interview with Sky News Arabia, the Russian president stated that the referenda in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia cemented Russia’s claim to the territories, despite international condemnation.
Putin emphasized that Ukraine must accept the results of those ballots to avoid another full-scale conflict. He reiterated Moscow’s stance that the votes legally justify Russia’s annexation of the regions, even though most of the world considers them illegitimate. Russia still doesn’t fully control all of the areas it claims.
In September 2022, Russia organized the referenda shortly after invading Ukraine. These were widely called shams and were condemned by the global community. Nevertheless, Putin signed treaties to annex the regions. Ukraine continues to fight to reclaim them, while Putin’s comments highlight the red lines in any possible negotiation.
Speaking to Sky News Arabia, Putin said Ukraine must either recognize the 2022 referenda or risk renewed armed conflict. He also claimed a peace deal nearly happened during talks in Istanbul in 2022 and urged Ukraine to stop following foreign influence.
He repeated that peace would only be possible if Ukraine remained neutral, stayed out of military alliances, and refused to seek nuclear weapons. Putin accused Western countries of turning Ukraine into a tool against Russia, adding that Ukraine “deserves a better fate.
During the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin declared, “Ukraine is part of Russia,” calling Russians and Ukrainians “one people.” In response, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X:
Wherever a Russian soldier sets foot, he brings only death, destruction, and devastation.
Putin also said he didn’t rule out taking Sumy to create a buffer zone. His negotiator, Medinsky, warned earlier this month that Russia could seize more territory if Ukraine refuses its terms.
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Yuriy Boyechko, CEO of Hope for Ukraine, said a ceasefire might only happen if the Trump administration pushes Putin to agree to one. He criticized Trump’s silence after Russia’s most deadly attack in nearly a year and urged the U.S. Senate to pass Senator Lindsey Graham’s bill for more sanctions.
Sybiha further condemned Vladimir Putin, calling him “a mass murderer” who has sent over a million Russian soldiers to die for no strategic gain. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in Washington stated that Vladimir Putin narrative of Ukraine belonging to Russia shows his goal of destroying Ukraine’s statehood.
Vladimir Putin warning that the Ukraine war may resume over the 2022 referenda pushes negotiations further out of reach. The ISW said Putin believes in winning through gradual advances and attrition—making peace unlikely in the near term.
