CIS

Home page

CIS

Putin's aide says it's possible there won't be any Russian troops in Donbas

Yuri Ushakov, the assistant to the Russian President for international affairs

12 December 2025 15:14 (UTC +04:00)

It is possible that there will be neither Russian nor Ukrainian troops in Donbas, only the "Rosgvardia" (National Guard of the Russian Federation - ed.), said Yuri Ushakov, the assistant to the Russian President for international affairs, APA's Moscow bureau reports.

"It is quite possible that there will be neither Russian nor Ukrainian troops there. Yes, but there will be the "Rosgvardia", our police, everything necessary to maintain order and organize life," he said.

Kremlin official has stated that Russia will sooner or later take control of the entire Donbas region.

The Russian president’s aide said that following peace talks, there may be no Russian or Ukrainian troops left in Donbas.

The Kremlin believes that Russia’s National Guard and police will maintain public order in Donbas. He made these remarks in an interview with the Kommersant newspaper.

Ushakov emphasized that Donbas will “sooner or later” come fully under Russia’s control — “if not through negotiations, then by military means.”

According to him, “everything else will depend on this. That is, a ceasefire can only take place after Ukrainian troops withdraw. What happens next — in my opinion, this can be discussed. Therefore, it is entirely possible that there will be neither Russian nor Ukrainian troops in Donbas. Yes, but Rosgvardiya, our police, and everything necessary to maintain order and organize daily life will be there,” he said.

Ushakov added that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky opposes the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Donbas, noting that this was “one of the demands put forward to him by the Americans.”

“In any case, whatever the outcome, this territory is part of the Russian Federation and will sooner or later be under the control of our administrations,” he concluded.