“We did not start anything as far as military action goes. We’re trying to end the military action,” Putin emphasized. “The military action started in 2014 after a coup d’état in Ukraine by those who did not want a normal, peaceful development, who wanted to suppress their people.”
The Russian President said that ultimately Russia will “stand to benefit” from the invasion. And says he will “carry it through” to the end.
War with Ukraine update
Putin has always called the Russian invasion of Ukraine a “special military operation.”
The war has been dragging on for months. Russian troops initially took over the Kyiv capital city region. And they pushed out of the city and West Ukraine regions in the Spring.
Currently, Russia is focusing attacks on the East, where they occupy some key cities. Armed with weapons from the EU and the US, Ukraine began a major counterattack in late July and August. There are disputed claims on how successful Ukraine has been at reclaiming their territory.
It has been estimated that Russia has suffered up to 80,000 casualties in less than six months. There are also confirmed reports that they have lost a large number of Russian generals and high-ranking military. The invading forces are said to be resigning or going AWOL from the Russian army.
