Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Ukraine to withdraw from four eastern regions partially occupied by his forces as a condition of peace talks, a demand Kyiv dismissed as “manipulative” on the eve of an international conference on the war.

Putin said Ukrainian forces should pull out from the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of the country in return for a cease-fire by Russian troops. He also said Ukraine must give up its bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, in a televised speech before Russian foreign ministry officials on Friday (Saturday AEST).

Bloomberg