Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed Monday to achieve all his “goals” in Ukraine and celebrated the second anniversary of annexing four Ukrainian regions, as his army claimed fresh advances in the conflict.
Moscow has captured dozens of Ukrainian towns and villages this year, pressing forward even as Kyiv mounts a cross-border offensive into Russian territory.
“The truth is on our side. All goals set will be achieved,” Putin said in a video address marking what he calls “Reunification Day” — when Moscow annexed four southern and eastern Ukrainian regions in 2022.
He also repeated his justification for sending troops into Ukraine, saying he was protecting Russian speakers against a “neo-Nazi dictatorship” that aimed to “cut them off forever from Russia, their historic homeland”.
“Together we are defending a safe, prosperous future for our children and grandchildren,” Putin said.
Russia claimed to annex the Ukrainian regions of Lugansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson in September 2022, but it does not fully control any of them.