By Gloria Ogbonna
Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued a stern warning that Moscow will pursue further military expansion in Ukraine if ongoing peace negotiations fail to meet the Kremlin’s demands.
Speaking on Wednesday during an annual meeting with senior military officials, Putin emphasized that while Russia remains open to diplomatic solutions, it is fully prepared to rely on military force to secure what it describes as its strategic and historical objectives.
Putin said Russia would prefer to resolve the conflict through negotiations and eliminate what he called the “root causes” of the war. However, he cautioned that if Ukraine and its Western backers refuse to engage in what Moscow considers meaningful dialogue, Russia would move decisively to achieve its goals through military means.
He framed the conflict as a defensive struggle and vowed that Russia would continue what he termed the “liberation of its historical lands.”
The remarks come amid an intensified diplomatic push led by U.S. President Donald Trump to bring an end to nearly four years of war following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Despite multiple rounds of talks involving American, European, and Ukrainian officials, negotiations have been hampered by sharply opposing positions from Moscow and Kyiv.
Ukraine and its Western allies continue to regard Russia’s actions as an unprovoked act of aggression and a blatant violation of Ukrainian sovereignty.
Nevertheless, Putin claimed that Russian forces currently hold the strategic initiative along the entire front line. He also announced plans to expand a so-called “buffer security zone” near Russia’s border, warning that Moscow would continue pressing forward militarily.
“Our troops today are battle-hardened,” Putin said, praising what he described as the strength and experience of Russia’s armed forces. He asserted that no other army in the world currently matches Russia’s combat readiness.
Putin also highlighted Russia’s expanding military capabilities, with particular attention to the modernization of its nuclear arsenal. He pointed to the Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile, a nuclear-capable weapon he said would officially enter combat duty later this month.
Russia first tested a conventional version of the missile in November 2024 during a strike on a Ukrainian industrial facility. Putin has repeatedly claimed the missile is impossible to intercept.
These tough statements coincided with several days of high-level discussions between Ukrainian, American, and European officials over a U.S.-drafted peace plan. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after meeting U.S. envoys in Berlin that the proposal could be finalized within days before being presented to the Kremlin.
Putin has demanded that Ukraine and the international community recognize Russian control over Crimea—annexed illegally in 2014—as well as territories seized in four eastern and southern regions since 2022. He has also insisted that Ukraine withdraw from additional areas in eastern Ukraine that Russian forces have not yet fully captured.
Beyond territorial demands, the Kremlin continues to oppose Ukraine’s aspirations to join NATO. Moscow has warned it would consider any deployment of NATO troops on Ukrainian soil as legitimate military targets.
While Zelenskyy has indicated a willingness to pause Ukraine’s NATO bid in exchange for strong security guarantees from the U.S. and its allies, Kyiv maintains that NATO membership remains the most reliable safeguard against future Russian aggression.
Zelenskyy has firmly rejected Moscow’s calls for Ukrainian troops to withdraw from areas Russia has failed to seize by force. He described the draft peace plan discussed in Berlin as “not perfect” but “very workable,” noting that talks were nearing agreement on robust security guarantees.
However, he stressed that the issue of territorial control remains unresolved and rejected U.S. pressure for Ukraine to surrender the eastern Donetsk region.
During the same military meeting, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov outlined plans for further battlefield advances. He said recent gains in Donetsk have positioned Russian forces for a rapid push into Ukrainian-controlled areas of the region.
Belousov also announced preparations to expel Ukrainian troops from parts of the Zaporizhzhia region—annexed by Russia in 2022 but never fully occupied—as well as plans to extend operations into neighboring Dnipropetrovsk.
“The key task for the coming year is to maintain and accelerate the tempo of the offensive,” Belousov said. He added that Russia would continue expanding its military capabilities, with a focus on drones, electronic warfare systems, and air defense assets.
As ground fighting intensifies, Russia has continued its daily missile and drone assaults across Ukraine. Ukrainian officials reported that at least 26 people were injured in Zaporizhzhia and nearby areas after Russian glide bombs struck residential buildings, infrastructure, and an educational facility.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched at least 69 long-range drones overnight, with air defenses intercepting or jamming 29 of them by morning as attacks continued throughout the day. Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed its air defenses downed 94 Ukrainian drones overnight.
In Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, drone strikes reportedly injured two people and damaged several private homes. In the southwestern Voronezh region, officials said debris from downed drones damaged a power line serving a key infrastructure site, sparking a fire that was quickly brought under control.
As diplomacy continues behind closed doors, Putin’s remarks underscore Moscow’s readiness to escalate the conflict further should negotiations fail, raising concerns that the war could intensify rather than move closer to resolution.
Source Breitbart
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