Published on 6/28/2026
Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed that his country does not intend to give Ukraine an opportunity to stop the advance of Russian forces on the battle fronts, stressing that military operations will continue in parallel with the continuation of political contacts and negotiations on resolving the crisis.
Putin said in an interview with Russian television that Moscow had received new proposals from the Ukrainian side, and was studying them carefully, but he made clear that Russia would not allow the creation of negotiating conditions that he described as favorable for Kiev, stressing that Moscow’s priority remained achieving its military goals on the ground.
The Russian President accused the Ukrainian authorities of trying to distract Russian forces from their main mission, which is to fully control the Donbass region, noting that the Ukrainian proposals regarding limiting the scope of military operations do not include, according to him, a change in Moscow’s goals.
Regarding the field, Putin spoke about the continued advance of Russian forces in several axes, and said that the Russian forces were now about 10.5 kilometers from the city of Sumy. He also indicated that progress had been achieved in the direction of Kubyansk and Rubtsovsk, considering that the Ukrainian counterattacks did not succeed in stopping the Russian movements.
He added that the tasks of the Russian forces in the Sumy and Volchansk axes are to establish a security zone along the border, noting that Moscow believes that the attacks carried out by Ukraine inside Russian territory aim to create a state of instability and force Russia to stop its military advance.
Crimes of the Ukrainian regime
Putin said that the Ukrainian attacks on Russian infrastructure, including civilian facilities, come as part of what he described as a media operation within the framework of the confrontation with Moscow, stressing that the damage to these facilities is being repaired quickly.
The Russian President touched on the situation in the Kursk region, where he said that what he described as “crimes of the Ukrainian regime” would result in Kiev losing territory that Russia needs to establish a security zone, stressing that Russian counter-operations have become more powerful and are causing great damage to the Ukrainian forces.
On the military side, Putin spoke about the challenges facing the Ukrainian forces, saying that their personnel shortage had become “catastrophic,” at a time when he stressed the need to strengthen the Russian air defense system to confront Western weapons arriving in Kiev.
He pointed out that Russia possesses air defense systems, but the challenge is to quickly increase supplies and production, calling for significantly increasing the production of the required air defense systems, and coordinating the efforts of various institutions to protect infrastructure and the population.
Putin stressed that Moscow will continue to develop its defense capabilities, at a time when the military and political confrontation with Kiev continues, considering that the course of the war is still linked to what is happening on the ground and the balance of power on the field.
