This is how Vladimir Putin summed up the war in Ukraine. He talks about 5 thousand. square kilometers
Vladimir Putin, speaking at a meeting with Russia's top military commanders on Tuesday on his 73rd birthday, summarized his country's achievements so far in the war with Ukraine. According to Reuters, the Russian president said that Ukrainian forces “are retreating in all sectors of the front, and Kiev's attempts to strike deep into Russian territory will not help Ukraine much.”
— At this moment, the Russian armed forces are fully taking over the strategic initiative, said Putin, quoted by Reuters. He added that this year Russia “liberated” almost 5,000. square kilometers of territory and 212 towns.
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Putin boasts of successes. Ukraine says otherwise
As Putin emphasized at a meeting in northwestern Russia, Ukrainian forces are “withdrawing along the entire line of combat contact, despite attempts at fierce resistance.” Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, claimed the same, stating that Ukrainian forces were currently focusing only on slowing down the Russian attack.
Reuters, however, reminds that the reports from the Ukrainian army show something different. Ukrainian sources report that Kiev's troops liberated part of the Donetsk region, including near Dobropillia, a town near the key logistics hub of Pokrovsk. President Volodymyr Zelensky, in turn, said that Ukrainian forces had regained the area in the border region of Sumy.
In his speech at the meeting on his 73rd birthday, Putin said Russia's goals remain the same as when the “special military operation” began in February 2022. He added that it was about “demilitarization” and “denazification” of Ukraine.
