Russian President Vladimir Putin has stressed his intention to continue military operations in Ukraine. This comes after he received a report that his country’s forces captured a main stronghold in eastern Ukraine.
The Russian presidential office said on Friday that Putin held a meeting with the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, and others at a command post.
Putin reportedly said the “liberation” of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk has been fully completed. He also said Russian troops have taken control of more than 3,000 square kilometers of area in Donbas and elsewhere since the beginning of this year.
Gerasimov told Putin that Russian forces have taken control of the city of Kostiantynivka in the Donetsk region, one of Ukraine’s main defensive strongholds.
Putin responded by saying this capture is undoubtedly the key to “liberating” the entire region.
Another senior military official told the president that Russian forces have not yet been able to fully resolve the issue of preventing Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles from penetrating deep into Russian territory.
Also on Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote in a social media post that his country has reached the capability to produce a volume of advanced weapons which, in the long term, can surpass Russia’s capabilities.
He also emphasized Ukraine’s policy of expanding missile production to counter Russia.