Ukraine war
Putin proposes ceasefire for Kostiantynivka in Donbass
Updated November 12, 2026 – 2:50 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
During a ceasefire, Russians and Ukrainians recently worked together to rescue hundreds of people from the front-line town of Oleschky. Now Kremlin leader Putin is proposing a new humanitarian campaign of this kind.
The Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed a new temporary ceasefire, this time for the embattled town of Kostiantynivka in the Donetsk region, at a meeting with US negotiators in the Kremlin. There, as was recently the case in the front-line town of Oleshky in the Kherson region, hundreds of people could be brought to safety in a humanitarian operation, Putin said. Russia We need five days of ceasefire to clear the area of mines, he said at the start of the meeting with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Putin stated that the Ukraine assumed control of Kostiantynivka. He emphasized that he himself sees the city near Kramatorsk under Russian control. Hundreds of people could be saved in a new joint operation by Kiev and Moscow, he said. As was the case in Oleschky at the end of October, international media representatives, including from the USAbe invited to get an idea of the situation.
Model: The rescue of hundreds of people from Oleschky
In Oleschky, the human rights commissioners of Ukraine and Russia had mediation from the US first lady Melania Trump led the mission together. They then announced that there could be further operations of this kind. After talks with Putin, Witkoff and Kushner also want to meet with the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky meet in Dublin.
Overall, Putin appeared unyielding at the meeting. He emphasized that the lines in resolving the conflict are Russia’s state borders. The Kremlin leader annexed the Ukrainian regions of Kherson, Zaporizhia, Luhansk and Donetsk and declared them Russian territory in 2022 without having control there. This is not internationally recognized. Russia is demanding a withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the Donetsk region – as a prerequisite for a comprehensive ceasefire. Ukraine categorically rejects any cessions of territory.
