Russia signals it could “freeze” current front lines in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia and withdraw from small occupied pockets in the northeast, but only after Kyiv accepts the other terms.
Importantly, this proposed arrangement includes no upfront halt to fighting, meaning active combat would persist right up until all the stipulated requirements have been fully satisfied. The effect would be to consolidate a land bridge to Crimea while offering narrowly tailored withdrawals elsewhere.
In practice, a freeze on those southern fronts would hard‑code substantial territorial losses for Ukraine, including critical infrastructure and agricultural zones, while relieving pressure on Russia’s force posture.
In essence, Kyiv would end up exchanging lasting territorial concessions in the southern regions for temporary and potentially undoable moves in the northeast, an exchange crafted to appear as genuine de-escalation while preserving the fundamental dynamics of the ongoing conflict.