In his New Year’s address, President Vladimir Putin told Russian troops “we believe in you and our victory” as the war in Ukraine enters its fourth year.
MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin urged Russians to believe in victory in Ukraine during his annual New Year’s Eve address.
His speech capped a year marked by steady Russian advances and a US-led diplomatic push to end the fighting.
Putin devoted much of his short address to “fighters and commanders” in Ukraine, calling soldiers “heroes”.
“We believe in you and our victory,” Putin said in the speech.
The Russian leader has consistently stated his military intends to seize Ukrainian land he claims as Russian if talks fail.
Russia now occupies around a fifth of Ukraine and continues a near-daily barrage of missiles and drones.
The strikes have killed thousands of Ukrainian civilians and displaced millions more.
In Vyshgorod, residents left without power for days due to bombing told AFP the strikes made their lives “hell”.
US-led diplomacy has gained pace, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expected to attend a summit in France.
Zelensky recently held talks with US President Donald Trump in Florida.
Russia has shown no sign of dropping its maximalist demands in Ukraine, however.
The European Union accused Moscow of trying to “derail” negotiations with a claim about an attack on Putin’s residence.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching dozens of drones at Putin’s lakeside home in the Novgorod region.
Moscow called it a “terrorist attack” and a “personal attack” against Putin.
The Kremlin said the alleged incident would toughen its negotiation stance in war talks.
The US-based Institute for the Study of War said it had not seen evidence to corroborate the Kremlin’s claims.
Putin has not publicly commented on the alleged attack aside from the Kremlin saying he informed Trump about it.
His residences and private life remain shrouded in secrecy in Russia.
