The Russian president made the remarks as Moscow and Kyiv observe a three-day ceasefire in their four-year conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday hinted that the Ukraine war could soon end. Speaking to reporters after marking Russia’s Victory Day parade, Putin said: “I think that the ‌matter is coming to an end.” The comment was made in response to a question about whether Western help to Ukraine went too far. The Russian leader said: “They started ratcheting up the confrontation with Russia, which continues to this day. I think it is heading to an end, but it’s still a serious matter.”

Putin’s remarks come as Kyiv and Moscow observe a three-day ceasefire in Russia’s war in Ukraine this weekend. The truce was announced on Friday by US President Donald Trump after negotiations brokered by Washington. European Council President Antonio Costa on Thursday said the European Union was prepared to hold separate talks with Russia and Ukraine “when the right moment comes."

  • SirEDCaLot@lemmy.todayEnglish
    20·
    12 hours ago

    Exactly this. Ukraine has started open cooperation with foreign weapons companies, inviting them to come test their autonomous systems in real battlefield conditions. Given that the rest of Europe is arming up against potential Russian hostility, the opportunity to test your new weapons against their most likely opponent is a golden ticket. My guess is a lot of these new designs are proving effective, and Putin is realizing that any more ‘special military operations’ will be taken as proof positive that Russia has turned conquistador and met with overwhelming force by most of the rest of Europe.

    It’s also possible he’s just running out of troops. The last estimate I saw was something like 340,000 Russian casualties…

      • BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.cafeEnglish
        1·
        26 minutes ago

        Just for context, America lost about 58,000 soldiers in 10-12 years in Vietnam, and about 4000 on 20 years in Afghanistan.

        Putin has lost 1.3 MILLION+ soldiers in a only 2-3 years. He’s gone from a voluntary military, to a draft, to commuting prison sentences, to literally snatching military age males off the streets, to hiring mercenaries. He’s quickly running out options for his war machine.