On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated that Russia’s objectives in Ukraine remain steadfast and will be realized through negotiations or, if necessary, by advancing militarily should diplomatic avenues prove unproductive.
Addressing an annual assembly at the Defense Ministry, Putin highlighted Russia’s military achievements and advancements in technology as the conflict in Ukraine enters its fourth year.
“The targets of this special military operation will undoubtedly be met,” he asserted, employing the Kremlin’s terminology for the large-scale invasion initiated in 2022.
Putin expressed a preference for resolving the conflict’s underlying issues through diplomacy. Nonetheless, he warned that if the opposing side and its international supporters continue to shun meaningful talks, Russia is prepared to secure what it views as its historical territories through military action, as stated in a government-released transcript of his speech to military officials.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chief of the General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov attended the annual Defense Ministry board meeting in Moscow on December 17, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Additionally, Putin criticized Kyiv and its European partners for allegedly “stirring up hysteria” over Moscow, even as the Trump administration seeks to conclude the conflict.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned allies last week that Russia could be ready to use military force against the alliance within five years and urged members to boost defense spending and production, so their armed forces have the resources to protect their homelands.
Putin referred to European leaders as “piglets” during the Defense Ministry meeting, according to a translated video of the remarks posted by Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev.
Russian troops stand for a moment of silence at the annual board meeting of the Defense Ministry in Moscow Dec. 17, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
The comment was part of a broader tirade against the West, with Putin accusing European governments of helping Washington try to weaken and divide Russia.
“They were hoping to profit from the collapse of our country. To get back something that was lost in previous historical periods and try to take revenge,” said Putin. “As it has now become obvious to everyone, all these attempts and all these destructive plans towards Russia completely failed.”
The remarks come as U.S., European, Russian and Ukrainian officials engage in a flurry of diplomacy over potential paths to ending the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his negotiating team met in Berlin Sunday with Jared Kushner and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine.
(Front row from left) Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and (back row from left) Jonas Gahr, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Ursula von der Leyen, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stand together in the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, on Dec. 15, 2025. (Markus Schreiber, Pool/AP)
Witkoff and Kushner previously held a five-hour meeting in Moscow with Putin and top foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov in early December to hash out elements of a revised peace proposal after the original leaked 28-point draft drew criticism for being too favorable to the Kremlin.
Ushakov said the Russian side received four documents from the U.S. envoys during the meeting, including one that consisted of 27 points, but he declined to go into detail of what they contained.
