Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday that Russian forces had captured almost 5,000 square kilometers (1,930 square miles) of Ukrainian territory this year, asserting that Moscow continues to hold “complete strategic initiative” on the battlefield.
Addressing a meeting with top Russian military commanders near St. Petersburg on his 73rd birthday, Putin said the gains amounted to roughly 1% of Ukraine’s land area, bringing total Russian control to nearly 20%.
“At this time, the Russian armed forces fully hold the strategic initiative,” Putin said. “This year, we have liberated nearly 5,000 square km of territory – 4,900 – and 212 localities.” He added that Ukrainian forces were retreating across all sectors of the front.
Russian Defense Ministry officials also reported the capture of two additional villages along the 1,250 km (775 miles) front, which stretches across Ukraine’s eastern and southern regions.
Russian Army General Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff, described Russian forces as “advancing in practically all directions,” with the heaviest fighting focused on Pokrovsk and areas leading toward Dnipropetrovsk. Moscow’s troops are reportedly pushing toward key cities including Siversk and Kostyantynivka in Donetsk, and making progress in Kupiansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipropetrovsk, while also establishing buffer zones in Sumy and Kharkiv regions.
Putin reaffirmed that Russia’s objectives in Ukraine remain unchanged since the start of the “special military operation” in February 2022, describing it as an effort to “demilitarize and denazify” the country.
However, Ukrainian authorities have disputed the scale of Russia’s gains. Ukraine’s military has said Moscow has failed to capture any major cities this year, while Kyiv forces report advances in the Donetsk region around Dobropillia, near the logistics hub of Pokrovsk, and in the border Sumy region.
