💬 President Vladimir Putin: When it comes to current developments, it is, of course, the result of yet another misadventure by the Kiev regime and its Western allies, who planned to inflict another 'strategic defeat' on Russia. This time, it was intended to be achieved within 40 days through massive missile and UAV strikes against our civilian facilities and logistics. There has been no turning point in the confrontation with Russia, and there will not be. The Kiev regime and its patrons cannot gain any advantage, have not gained any, and never will. In response to this obvious escalation – based not on an objective analysis of the situation on the battlefield or the state of the Ukrainian economy, society and state, all of which are corroded by corruption, but on PR and ambition – we have increased strikes on Ukraine’s defence industry enterprises, including those in Kiev. We are also responding to the enemy’s actions against our civilian industrial and logistics facilities. Russia's response to another provocation by Kiev regime is, by all appearances, causing them serious repercussions and bringing some primary areas to a crisis. This is why the Kiev authorities are now trying to get out of the current situation via intermediaries, whose opinion we respect. I want to stress that they provoked this situation themselves. Excerpt from President Putin's answers to media questions