MOSCOW/ISTANBUL 

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that 2025 marked "an important stage in accomplishing the objectives of the "special military operation" in Ukraine.

Speaking at the Defense Ministry headquarters in Moscow, Putin asserted that the Russian army has seized and "firmly" holds the strategic initiative along the entire front line.

"The Russian Armed Forces have liberated over 300 settlements this year," he said.

According to Putin, despite Western military aid, including weapons supplies and the training of Ukrainian troops, Russian forces continue to advance, "grinding down the opponent, including its elite units trained in Western military centers."

He added that Russia has the capability to increase the pace of its offensive in strategically important directions.

The Russian leader also detailed the ongoing strengthening of the military. The navy’s composition was bolstered this year by new submarines and 19 surface ships and vessels, he said.

New weapons, he added, were also put into service following successful tests of the nuclear-propelled Oreshnik, Burevestnik, and Poseidon systems.

"The 'Oreshnik' system will be put on combat duty by the end of the year," Putin said, referring to the intermediate range ballistic missile Russia used in Ukraine in November 2024.

In response to Ukrainian shelling, Putin said, Russia plans to expand the security buffer zone.

He also dismissed Western warnings of a potential Russian attack on Europe as "a lie and nonsense," adding: "Politicians in Europe are raising hysteria and put fears into people's heads about an inevitable clash with Russia."

He said Russia's strategic nuclear forces serve the purpose of deterring an aggressor and maintaining the global balance of power.