Moscow:

Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed on Monday to achieve all his “goals” in Ukraine and marked the second anniversary of the annexation of four Ukrainian regions, as his military claimed fresh progress in the conflict.

Moscow has captured dozens of Ukrainian towns and villages this year, even as Kiev continues to push across the border into Russian territory.

“The truth is on our side. All set goals will be achieved,” Putin said in a video address on what he called “Reunification Day” — when Moscow annexes four southern and eastern regions of Ukraine in 2022. was

He also reiterated his justification for sending troops to Ukraine, saying they were protecting Russian-speakers against a “neo-Nazi dictatorship” that aims to “cut them off forever from their historic homeland, Russia.” “.

“Together we are defending a safe, prosperous future for our children and grandchildren,” Putin said.

Russia claimed to have annexed Ukraine’s Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions in September 2022, but does not have full control over any of them.

The Kremlin has pursued a sustained offensive in eastern Ukraine in recent months, capitalizing on the exhaustion of Ukrainian troops and relentless bombing.

The Russian military said on Monday that its troops had “liberated” the Ukrainian village of Nelypivka, which had a population of about 1,000 before the conflict.

It lies just north of the Ukrainian city of New York, where Kiev claimed extraordinary gains in early September.

The main target of Moscow’s offensive in recent months has been the Ukrainian logistics hub of Pokrosk, a city on road and rail routes that supplies Kiev’s forces on the front line.

– ‘One on One Conversation’ –

Putin’s comments came shortly after Russia launched a fresh wave of missile and drone attacks on Ukraine overnight, some of which were aimed at the capital Kiev.

Ruslan Kravchenko, head of the Kiev regional military administration, said, “The enemy carried out another major attack with drones on the Kiev region overnight. Air defense forces worked effectively in the area.”

He added that the debris of some of the collapsed barrages caught fire, but there was no loss of life and no damage to critical infrastructure.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibega was in Budapest on Monday to meet with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szjarto.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is the only EU leader who has maintained close ties with the Kremlin since the conflict began in 2022 and has refused military support for Kiev.

“One-on-one talks between Andriy Sybega and Peter Sejarto lasted about an hour, twice as long as planned,” Ukraine’s foreign ministry said without elaborating.

Hungary has previously withheld substantial funds for Ukraine, much to the dismay of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his EU allies.

(Other than the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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