Putin: Ukraine Essentially Refusing to End Conflict by Peaceful Means
15:00 19.12.2025 (Updated: 16:01 19.12.2025)
© Sputnik / Sergey Guneev
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The Ukraine crisis started with 2014 Euromaidan coup, the Russian president pointed out at his year-end presser:
In 2022, Ukraine threw the peace deal agreed at Istanbul into the dustbin of history
Nevertheless, Russia sees certain “signals” from the Kiev regime on readiness to hold dialogue
Russia is ready to resolve the conflict through talks, on the basis of principles laid out by President Putin at a Foreign Ministry briefing in June 2024
Russia has the strategic initiative
Putin confident: Krasny Liman to be taken soon
Seversk’s liberation opens the path toward Slavyansk; with Slavyansk, Kramatorsk and Konstantinovka now Ukraine’s main strongholds. Seversk’s strategic value lies in the fact that its liberation opened the road for Russian forces toward Slavyansk — the core of the largest Kiev-held urban cluster in Donbass.
Russian forces are advancing in all directions, taking the strategic initiative after the liberation of occupied areas of Kursk in April:
Russian forces are advancing in Krasny Liman
Kupyansk is under Russian control, 3,500 encircled Ukrainian troops "virtually have no chances left"
The taking of Krasnoarmeysk is a key bridgehead for future advances
Ukrainian forces in Dimitrov are “completely surrounded,” and trying to evacuate in small groups
Russian forces in Zaporozhye region are advancing steadily, with enemy-held settlements falling “one by one”
In Sumy region, Volchansk has been taken
In Kharkov region, Kupyansk is under Russian control
The latter two operations are part of Russia’s broader efforts to create a security perimeter
Putin expressed confidence that before the end of the year, new victories will be seen.
