Russian leader Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that his decision to launch the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was “right and timely,” repeating his justification for the war during a meeting with Russian military commanders in St. Petersburg.
Putin recalled that Russia recently marked the “Day of Reunification” of the occupied Ukrainian territories with the Russian Federation on Sept. 30.
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He claimed that residents of these regions had “overwhelmingly” voted to join Russia in Kremlin-organized referendums.
“This confirms that the decisions made in February 2022 were correct and timely,” Putin said, according to the state-run TASS news agency.
The annexation of four Ukrainian regions in 2022 followed sham referendums held by Russia’s proxies in the occupied parts of these regions, with authorities claiming on Sept. 27 that nearly 100% of people living in the occupied territories “voted” to join Russia.
The Russian leader reiterated that his forces were “advancing along the entire front line,” while accusing Ukraine of carrying out strikes “deep inside Russian territory against entirely civilian targets.”
According to Putin, in 2025 Russian forces “liberated” nearly 5,000 square kilometers and 212 settlements. He praised soldiers, officers, and the defense industry for their performance.
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However, the figures voiced by Putin exceed by roughly one and a half times the visually confirmed territorial gains of Russian forces.
According to data from the Ukrainian OSINT project DeepState, Russia has captured around 3,200 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory so far this year.
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