On the 17th, Russian President Putin attended an expanded meeting of the Russian Ministry of Defense and said that Russia "will, as always, be ready for negotiations and prepared to peacefully resolve all issues that have emerged in recent years."
Putin did not specify which issues he was referring to, but pointed out that Russia was not the initiator of the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022. He said, "Destructive forces in Ukraine are supported by the West. In reality, it was the West itself that launched this war; we are merely trying to end it."
He stated that the previous U.S. administration deliberately "pushed things toward armed conflict." However, all sabotage plans targeting Russia have completely failed. Russia is currently in dialogue with the current U.S. administration and hopes that Europe can also engage in talks with the Russian side.
Russian forces hold the initiative on the Russia-Ukraine conflict front
Putin said that Russian forces currently hold the initiative along the entire Russia-Ukraine conflict front, and Russian troops are defeating Ukrainian forces, including Ukraine's elite troops trained in the West.
He pointed out that 2025 will be an important year in the process of accomplishing the tasks of the special military operation. Russia is capable of accelerating its offensive in the area of the special military operation, and the task of expanding the security buffer zone will be completed; the objectives of the special military operation will be achieved.
He said that several submarines and surface vessels have been commissioned into the Russian Navy this year, and the "Larch" intermediate-range ballistic missile will also begin combat duty by the end of this year.