Russian President Vladimir Putin no longer intends to return any part of the occupied territories to Ukraine as part of any deal to end the war and plans to keep them as buffer zones, Bloomberg agency reported on Wednesday, July 22, citing sources close to the Kremlin. Three Bloomberg sources stated that Putin still intends to establish full control over the Donetsk region of Ukraine by force and to retain for Russia the Sumy and Kharkiv regions near the Russian border. According to them, the Kremlin chief has allegedly abandoned territorial concessions as Russia views "increasingly confrontational statements from the U.S. as evidence that the informal agreements reached at his summit in Alaska with President Donald Trump have collapsed." ## ## Putin is ready for negotiations after capturing the Donetsk region Moscow is only willing to return to negotiations after capturing the entire Donetsk region, a Bloomberg source claims. According to one of the sources, the Russian Ministry of Defense assured Putin that it would be able to establish full control over the Donbas territory by the end of this year. However, many in the Russian armed forces consider this timeline unrealistic and believe that control over the Donetsk region will only be achieved by 2027, the agency's source says. Bloomberg notes that Putin has hardened his position amid increasing Ukrainian strikes deep into Russia, including Moscow, as well as support from U.S. President Donald Trump for a new sanctions bill initiated by Senator Lindsey Graham.