Russia makes concessions in Ukraine peace talks, says US VP

US Vice President JD Vance has said Russia has made “significant concessions” in discussions over a potential settlement to its war in Ukraine, while cautioning there are no clear signs the conflict is close to ending.

Speaking on NBC’s Meet the Press, Vance said Russian President Vladimir Putin has shifted his position, notably acknowledging that Ukraine will require security guarantees to protect against future Russian aggression.

“I think the Russians have made significant concessions to President Trump for the first time in three and a half years of this conflict,” Vance said.

According to him, Moscow has dropped its initial demand to install a pro-Russian government in Kyiv, and importantly, recognised that Ukraine’s territorial integrity will have to be safeguarded.

Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, launching the deadliest conflict in Europe since the Second World War. At the outset, Putin demanded recognition of Russian control over annexed territories, alongside broader influence over Ukraine’s future political orientation.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine, launched in February 2022, started a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people. In return for ending Russia's attacks, Putin is demanding that Ukraine give up all of the eastern Donbas region, renounce ambitions to join NATO, remain neutral and keep Western troops out of the country, sources told Reuters last week.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that a group of nations including United Nations Security Council members should be the guarantors of Ukraine's security.

On Friday President Donald Trump renewed a threat to impose sanctions on Russia if there was no progress toward a peaceful settlement in Ukraine in two weeks, showing frustration at Moscow a week after his meeting with Putin in Alaska.

Vance said sanctions would be considered on a case-by-case basis, acknowledging that new penalties were unlikely to prompt Russia to agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine.

Vance pointed to Trump's announcement this month of an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods as a punishment for New Delhi's purchases of Russian oil as the kind of economic leverage that would be used in pursuit of peace.

"He's tried to make it clear that Russia can be re-invited into the world economy if they stop the killing, but they're going to continue to be isolated if they don't stop the killing," Vance said.