Vladimir Putin said Moscow will destroy the “anti-Russia” next door that the West created, as he insisted his invasion of Ukraine was going to plan.
The Russian president said in a televised address on Thursday that Kremlin forces were fighting against threats including nuclear weapons and claimed their assault was running on schedule.
He said: “The special military operation is proceeding strictly in line with the timetable. According to plan.
“All objectives that were set are being resolved successfully.”
Mr Putin’s comments seemed designed to rebut statements by Western governments and intelligence agencies that Russia’s campaign has stumbled in the face of logistical problems, tactical mistakes and fiercer-than-expected resistance from Ukraine.
He claimed his military had offered safe corridors so civilians could escape the risk to life from shelling and fighting in their towns – after agreeing to do so with Ukraine in the second round of negotiations in Belarus.
Ukraine’s government said more than 2,000 civilians had been killed since Russia sent tanks and troops over the border.
An International Criminal Court prosecutor on Wednesday opened an investigation into war crimes in Ukraine after referrals from 39 countries including the UK, Germany and France.
The Russian president alleged that Ukrainian forces were using civilians as human shields and holding foreign citizens hostage. His claims were unverified.
He accused Ukrainian soldiers of behaving in the manner of Nazis during Second World War fighting between Russia and Germany.
In his Thursday address, Mr Putin also reaffirmed his stated rationale for the war, which Ukraine and the West have rejected as baseless propaganda.
“Now on Ukrainian territory, our soldiers and officers are fighting for Russia, for a peaceful life for the citizens of Donbass, for the denazification and demilitarisation of Ukraine, so that we can’t be threatened by an anti-Russia right on our borders that the West has been creating for years,” he said.
Mr Putin said Russian soldiers were heroes and ordered additional payments to families of those killed or wounded in action.
As Russian troops continued their offensives against several Ukrainian cities, Volodymyr Zelensky called on Mr Putin to meet him for one-to-one negotiations.
He said it was the “only way to stop the war” as the second round of talks between delegates in Belarus floundered.
Ahead of Thursday’s meeting in Belarus, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia would not end the war until achieving its goals, chiefly the “demilitarisation of Ukraine”. He added it would be up to Ukrainians to choose what government they have.
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