Kremlin Urges Immediate Ukrainian Withdrawal from Donbas

The Kremlin has urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to withdraw forces from Donbas immediately to end the current phase of the war. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov's comments followed Zelenskiy's disclosure of a Russian ultimatum for withdrawal or face harsher conditions in future peace talks.

The Kremlin issued a statement on Wednesday urging Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to promptly withdraw his military forces from the Donbas region.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized that this withdrawal should have occurred already to terminate what they termed the 'hot phase' of the ongoing conflict.

This call was a direct response to Zelenskiy's earlier announcement that Russia had set a two-month deadline for a Ukrainian pullout, failing which tougher terms would be imposed in any forthcoming peace negotiations.

(With inputs from agencies.)