Putin says ‍‍`the whole of Ukraine is ours‍‍` - in theory

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday escalated tensions in the ongoing war with Ukraine by declaring that “the whole of Ukraine is ours”—a comment he later framed as theoretical. He made the remarks at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, amid fresh Russian advances near the Ukrainian border and growing concerns over Moscow’s territorial ambitions.

Putin claimed that Russians and Ukrainians are “one people,” adding, “in that sense, the whole of Ukraine is ours.” He also suggested that Russian troops could move to capture the city of Sumy as part of creating a buffer zone to protect Russian territory. However, he clarified that there was no current objective to seize the regional capital—though he "did not rule it out."

Ukraine‍‍`s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha condemned the comments, calling them a blatant show of “complete disdain” for U.S.-led peace efforts. Writing on social media platform X, he accused Russia of seeking to “seize more territory and kill more Ukrainians,” and labelled Putin a "top war criminal."

Currently, Russia controls approximately 20% of Ukrainian territory, including all of Crimea, nearly the entire Luhansk region, over 70% of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, and parts of Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk.

Despite claiming not to question Ukraine’s sovereignty, Putin reiterated that Ukraine had declared neutrality during its independence in 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union. He insisted any chance for peace depends on Kyiv recognizing Russia’s control over occupied regions, an outcome Ukraine and its Western allies have consistently rejected as illegal.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy responded strongly, saying in his nightly address that Russia had made it clear they had no interest in a ceasefire. “Russia wants to continue the war,” he said, referring to new Russian activity in the northern Sumy region. He called Russian plans “completely mad” and confirmed that Ukrainian forces are actively defending the area.

Putin summarized Russia’s stance with a stark statement: “Where the foot of a Russian soldier steps, that is ours.”