Ministry of Defence shares chilling reason Putin wants Ukraine to hand over unoccupied land

The Ministry of Defence issued an 'intelligence update' over the weekend with regards to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

On Friday 15 August, Putin met with US president Donald Trump in Alaska for crunch talks over the war in Ukraine.

While the latter was confident of striking a deal, with reports saying Trump planned to present Putin with an offer that would be 'too good' to refuse.

Trump even said that Russia would have to face 'very severe consequences' if a deal wasn't struck, but once the summit finished on Friday, a conclusion had not been reached.

Headlines were made over incidents that took place before and after the world leaders' chat, whether it be Trump's peculiar zig zag walk or Putin publicly speaking English in a rare moment in front of the press, telling Trump that the next summit should be in Moscow.

Trump is set to meet with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders at the White House later today (18 August) to discuss the war.

But as Russia and Ukraine remain in a deadlock over peace terms, there is the wonder of why this war started in the first place.

The UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) took to social media to release a statement about Putin and his desire to take land from Ukraine.

They stated that the Russian leader has reportedly made 'maximalist demands' which includes Ukrainian forces withdrawing from four of its oblasts in Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson.

It is further stated by the MoD that: “Based on the rate of Russia’s incremental battlefield advances so far in 2025, it would take Russian forces approximately 4.4 more years to gain 100% of the four Ukrainian oblasts’ territory.

“Based on Russia’s average daily casualty rate in 2025 so far, as reported by Ukrainian general staff, 4.4 more years of war would lead to approximately 1,930,000 further Russian casualties (killed and wounded).

“This is in addition to the approximately 1,060,000 casualties Russia has already likely sustained since launching the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, including around 250,000 killed or missing (presumed dead).”

The MoD also write that the millions of deaths began in September 2022 when Putin carried out the 'illegal and erroneous annexation' of the Ukrainian oblasts, which 'contradicted' Russia's acknowledgement of Ukraine's independence.

Why does Putin want Luhansk and Donetsk so badly?

Much of the fighting in the three-year war between Russia and Ukraine has been centred in the Donbas region.

Ceding Luhansk and Donetsk to Russia would give Putin control over much of this region, with potentially devastating consequences for Ukraine.

Donbas is a key area for coal mining, with Ukraine relying on it for energy, and it also has key strategic significance.

Elina Beketova, a fellow at the Centre for European Policy Analysis, told the Independent that losing key areas of the Donbas would be 'catastrophic'.

The area is full of bunkers, anti-tank ditches and minefields, and has been key in halting the Russian advance into Ukraine.

Beketova said: "The front would shift approximately 80km west, and Russia would gain open ground – flat steppe with no natural barriers – giving it a direct path towards Kharkiv, Poltava, and Dnipro."

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy has insisted that surrendering any territory to Russia is off the table.

Speaking in Brussels over the weekend following a discussion with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, he stated: “The constitution of Ukraine makes it impossible to give up territory or trade land.”

The Ukrainian leader has been adamant about a three-way summit between him, Trump and Putin to reach a peace deal, insisting that Ukraine has to be at the table no matter what.