
PM Modi thanks Putin for sharing insights on Alaska talks with Trump, reiterates call for peace in Ukraine
In a post on X, PM Modi wrote: 'Thank my friend, President Putin, for his phone call and for sharing insights on his recent meeting with President Trump in Alaska. India has consistently called for a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict and supports all efforts in this regard. I look forward to our continued exchanges in the days to come.'
Thank my friend, President Putin, for his phone call and for sharing insights on his recent meeting with President Trump in Alaska. India has consistently called for a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine conflict and supports all efforts in this regard. I look forward to our…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 18, 2025
(This is a developing story)

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The Hindu
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First Post
26 minutes ago
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‘Peace through strength': Zelenskyy warns Putin won't negotiate without pressure ahead of Trump talks
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Time of India
26 minutes ago
- Time of India
Ukraine's regions occupied by Russia: What you need to know
Diplomatic efforts are underway to settle the war, focusing on five Ukrainian regions occupied by Russia. Russia demands full control of Donetsk and Lugansk in exchange for freezing the southern front in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, a proposal the US leader is inclined to support. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Five Ukrainian regions occupied by Russia are at the centre of diplomatic efforts to settle the three-and-a-half-year has demanded the whole of the eastern regions of Donetsk and Lugansk in exchange for a freeze on the southern front line in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, according to a source.A source briefed on a phone call between Donald Trump and European leaders following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, told AFP that the US leader was "inclined to support" this Ukraine has refused to give up these regions, which it considers "temporarily occupied".Here is what you need to know about these territories.- Donetsk and Lugansk: Kremlin's top priority -The two regions bordering Russia form the Donbas, an industrial and mining region comprising Donetsk and Lugansk, and conquering it is a priority for troops hold more than 99 percent of the Lugansk region and 79 percent of the Donetsk region, as well as their regional capitals, according to AFP's analysis of data provided by the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and the Critical Threats Project (CTP).According to local officials, some 242,700 people still live in the Ukrainian-controlled parts of the Donetsk region, including in several Russian advance is threatening Ukrainian military logistic centres and strongholds in the area, which has been heavily fortified since 2014, when a Moscow-sponsored separatist revolt triggered a full-scale invasion of February 2022 made things worse, devastating large swathes of land and forcing many to and Lugansk are traditionally majority Russian-speaking areas, which were used as a pretext by the Kremlin to justify the September 2022, Russia said it had annexed the two coal mining regions, along with Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the Donetsk region has seen some of the war's bloodiest battles, such as in Bakhmut, Mariupol and Avdiivka.- Kherson: partly liberated -The Kherson region, known for agriculture, was almost entirely occupied by the Russian army in the beginning of the Ukraine later recaptured the regional capital, also called Kherson, in a November 2022 front line has since then been relatively stable, with the Russian army controlling about 71 percent of the Kherson region, according to AFP's has also been little movement in the Zaporizhzhia region, where Ukraine retains control of the main urban centre as well.- Zaporizhzhia: fragile nuclear region -According to AFP's calculations, Russia holds 74 percent of the Zaporizhzhia region, including the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant , the largest in Europe, which Moscow captured in the first weeks of the though the power plant has been shut down, it is still considered unsafe as it remains close to the and Ukraine accuse each other of targeting it.- Sumy and Kharkiv: minor incursions -In addition to the territories Russia claims to have annexed, its troops are conducting minor incursions into the northeastern border regions of Sumy and Moscow does not control any major settlements there and only occupies five percent of the Kharkiv region and one percent of the Sumy region, AFP's analysis of ISW and CTP data Kremlin has said it wants to establish a "buffer zone" there to prevent Ukrainian offensives into Russia, such as the Kursk incursion in the summer of 2024.- Crimea: 11 years of occupation -Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 in a referendum denounced by the international community, and the Kremlin's grip over the peninsula remains particularly seeks recognition of the annexation by Western countries and control of Crimea was out of the question for Ukraine, Trump warned on Sunday evening, two days after meeting 2018, Russia built a bridge linking the resort and wine-making region to the mainland, which is now a target for the Ukrainian is also striking Moscow's military and navy infrastructure on the heavily fortified life is for Ukrainians in the annexed territories remains difficult to dissent or criticism of the occupation is punished by the Moscow-installed administration, with detention, torture or death, according to Ukrainian Kremlin is accused of "russification" of the territories by controlling education, the media and all aspects of daily life, offering Russians incentives to move there and handing out Russian passports to Ukrainians.