One of Vladimir Putin’s demands at the summit in Alaska regarding ending the war in Ukraine was full control of Donbas.
In exchange, the Russian president reportedly offered a “freeze” of hostilities on the other fronts.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has long rejected this possibility, making it clear that he will not concede any territory that belongs to Ukraine.
Donbas is a region in eastern Ukraine whose economy is based on heavy industry.
Rich in coal and steel, the Donbas region — consisting of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts — produced about 30% of Ukraine’s coal exports in 2014 and was one of the economic engines of the Soviet Union (USSR).
It is also one of Ukraine’s regions with the largest Russian-speaking population, the result of internal migration of Russian workers during the USSR era.
Due to the large number of Russian speakers, the political preferences of Donbas residents often aligned with those of Moscow.
The overthrow of Kremlin-backed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014 (he was born in Donetsk) led to the annexation of Crimea and violent clashes between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists. By 2022, more than 14,000 people had been killed across eastern Ukraine.
In 2014, the separatists declared the establishment of two “People’s Republics” in Donetsk and Luhansk.
Putin’s main argument before the start of the war was that the Russian-speaking populations of Donbas had asked Moscow for help to prevent an “organized by Kyiv” genocide against them.
Moscow used the genocide claim as a pretext and invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Until the dissolution of the USSR (1991), about two-thirds of Donbas residents reported Russian as their native language.
(fyiteam)
In 2022, Moscow annexed four regions (Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia) following controversial referendums. Of these, it fully controls only Luhansk.
Beyond its symbolic, strategic and economic importance, Putin has also given Donbas historical significance, as he seeks to unite all Russian-speaking populations of the former USSR.
Russia currently controls about 88% of the region, but Ukraine still holds key cities such as Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
Control of Donbas would allow Putin to claim that “the mission has been accomplished,” as he would have achieved his initial goal of protecting Russian speakers.
Some analysts argue he might trade other occupied territories for Donbas, as he considers it “more his own.”
Others believe he could use it as a base for further expansion, while some say the war will continue until Zelenskyy is removed and a pro-Russian government is installed.
Despite heavy losses, Ukraine continues to defend the territories it still holds in Donbas, as more than 250,000 civilians continue to live there.
Polls show that about 75% of Ukrainians oppose territorial concessions, making any agreement involving Donbas politically problematic for Zelenskyy’s future.
Unlike Crimea, which carried deep historical significance for many Russians, Donbas had remained a more distant region with less symbolic weight.
Before 2022, only about one-quarter of Russians supported annexing Donbas.
However, after the invasion, the narrative of “protecting Russian speakers abroad” shifted public opinion, with the majority now supporting annexation of the territories.
Sources
