Putin says Russia will keep targeting Ukraine's military infrastructure and enlarge "security zone"
According to Putin, the campaign of large-scale strikes on Ukraine's defense industry should continue.
"In this regard, I would like to emphasize that the mission of carrying out massive group strikes against the infrastructure of Ukraine's military-industrial complex and the facilities that ensure its functioning must continue," he said.
Putin also claimed that, in response to what he described as Ukrainian attacks on Russia's civilian infrastructure, Moscow would expand the so-called "security zone."
During his remarks, Putin once again claimed that Russia had fully captured Ukraine's Luhansk region, referring to it as the "liberation of the Luhansk People's Republic" (LPR).
He also alleged that Russian forces had captured the town of Kostiantynivka in Ukraine's Donetsk region.
Earlier, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Putin had been informed of the complete "liberation" of Kostiantynivka. However, no objective evidence has been presented to support the claim.
In late June, Putin also asserted that Russian troops were just over 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the city of Sumy and between 2.5 and 5 kilometers from Kupiansk.
Ukraine's General Staff has since rejected Putin's claim that Kostiantynivka had been occupied. Military officials stressed that the town remains under the control of Ukraine's Defense Forces, although Russian sabotage and reconnaissance groups continue attempting to infiltrate it.
Moreover, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi previously reported that, in May, the balance between liberated and lost territory was nearly 100 square kilometers in Ukraine's favor. Overall, Ukrainian forces have liberated more than 600 square kilometers of territory since the beginning of the year.
Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelenskyi warned journalists that Russia could intensify its missile and drone attacks.
"Putin is becoming weaker. He is weakening politically, on the battlefield, and physically. That is why he may intensify attacks against us, against our people, with missiles and drones," Zelenskyi said.
The Ukrainian president also said that Ukraine remains ready for direct talks with Vladimir Putin, although he described him as "insane." According to Zelenskyi, Ukraine has conveyed proposals for a possible meeting to individuals he referred to as "Putin's friends" to discuss ending the war.
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- July, 03
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4 of July 2026
