Putin Threatens Zelensky as Russian Army Announces Expansion of Control in Ukraine

SadaNews - Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky to abandon the option of peace and rely on military means to resolve the conflict with Ukraine, coinciding with the announcement by the Russian army of the expansion of its control in Ukraine.

Interfax reported Putin as saying, "If Kyiv does not wish to resolve the situation peacefully, Russia will solve all problems by military means," and emphasized that Kyiv "is not in a hurry to end the conflict via peaceful means."

The Ukrainian president, in response to the widespread Russian attack with drones and missiles overnight, stated that Russia is showing its desire to continue the war, but Kyiv wants peace.

He clarified that the attack involved about 500 drones and 40 missiles, resulting in power and heating outages in parts of the capital.

The Kremlin earlier stated that the Russian president, who inspected one of the command centers of the Russian armed forces, received reports from Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov and commanders of the "Center" and "East" groups of the Russian forces.

The Kremlin stated in a statement that the reports reviewed by Putin indicate the "liberation" of the towns of Dmitrov (the Russian name for Myrnohrad) and Velyka Novosilka.

Myrnohrad is located in Donetsk, near Pokrovsk, and serves as an important logistics center. Russia announced control over it on December 1, which Kyiv denied.

The town of Velyka Novosilka is located in the eastern part of the Zaporizhia region (south), an area where Russia has made less frequent but accelerated progress in recent months.

In contrast, the Ukrainian army stated that its forces repelled Russian attempts to advance around Myrnohrad and Velyka Novosilka.

Trump Meeting

These developments came ahead of a scheduled meeting today, Sunday, between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, in a meeting Zelensky described as important for efforts to reach an agreement to end the war that has been raging for nearly four years.

The Ukrainian president stated that his discussions in Florida will focus on the territories that each party will control when fighting stops, which erupted in February 2022, the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II.

The issue of territory and the future of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, occupied by Russia, remain the main obstacles in diplomatic efforts to end the war, but Zelensky mentioned to reporters in Kyiv that a 20-point draft within efforts led by the United States to reach a peace plan has been completed by 90%.

The Ukrainian president, who made a stop in Halifax, Canada on Saturday en route to Florida, received strong support from Europeans and Canada on the eve of his anticipated meeting with Trump.

Zelensky stated that some details of the documents were not known to all European partners, as they were being worked on bilaterally, and confirmed that he discussed with European leaders the main documents he will discuss with the U.S. president.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz confirmed on Saturday that Zelensky enjoys "full support" from European and Canadian leaders, noting that the efforts of Europeans and Canada for "a lasting and fair peace in Ukraine" will be implemented "in close coordination with the United States."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized, via X platform, after the meeting between Zelensky and the European leaders, that peace must be "just, lasting, and uphold the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, while welcoming Zelensky, expressed that achieving a just and lasting peace in Ukraine is possible, but emphasized that "this requires Russia's willingness to cooperate."

Zelensky stated earlier to Axios that the United States offered a 15-year agreement on security guarantees, renewable, but Kyiv demanded a longer-term agreement with legally binding provisions to deter any further Russian aggression.

Trump expressed his belief that Sunday’s meeting will go well. He also stated that he expects to speak with Putin "soon."

Source: Agencies