Putin seeks to fully capture Donetsk region by December 31, this is already 15th "deadline" – Zelenskyy
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has already changed and postponed the "deadlines" for the full capture of the Donetsk region 15 times because of its prolonged "obsession with Donbas". Now this is supposed to happen by December 31, 2026.
He said this in his evening address, Censor.NET reports.
15 failed Kremlin deadlines in Donbas
Zelenskyy expressed special gratitude to every Ukrainian unit holding back enemy assaults in the most difficult areas of Donetsk region. According to him, the intensity of the fighting is caused by "Putin’s delusion" about Donbas.
"Russia’s political leadership is constantly delusional about Donbas. They have already had this delusion 15 times - as if they were going to fully capture Donbas. In 2022, there were deadlines of March 31, then May 9, June 1, September 15, and December 31. In 2023, Putin set two other deadlines for capturing Donbas: March 1 and then, when it failed again, they moved it to December 31. In 2024, there were two such deadlines again. In 2025, when the Russians tried to convince President Trump that Ukraine would supposedly fall, there were already three deadlines - the final dates for capturing Donetsk region, namely: September 1, December 1, and December 25. And already this year, the Russians again postponed the date for capturing Donetsk region. First, they had until March 31 of this year, then until September 1, and now the deadline is December 31," the President said.
- The head of state added that if Russia once again rejects peace proposals and decides to continue the war, Putin will have to move these dates again, losing another million of his own citizens on the battlefield.
Fuel collapse as Ukraine’s response
Zelenskyy separately drew attention to the fact that the consequences of the adventure unleashed by the Kremlin are increasingly hitting Russia’s own internal stability, destroying propaganda myths about a "successful and wealthy state".
"Putin can say on television as much as he wants that he supposedly controls everything, that there is supposedly gasoline, that Russian ministers are supposedly competent enough. But Russians themselves, standing in lines for gasoline in various regions of Russia, actually see that their 'three-day war' has been going on for a fifth year in such a way that even an oil state, a 'gas station', as Russia was called, now has a gasoline shortage. This is a direct consequence of the war. One of the consequences. And one example of how Ukraine responds. Precisely. Not in a terrorist way. We are bringing the reality of war back to Russia and making it as difficult as possible to continue the occupation of our land," the Ukrainian leader emphasized.
Adjustment of long-range operations
The President assured that the country’s military and political leadership is in constant contact with intelligence agencies, the Security Service of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense, and commanders on the ground. The strategy of medium- and long-range strikes is constantly being updated in line with challenges on the frontline.
"We are ensuring results for Ukraine that are needed so that the aggressor state cannot keep the war 'somewhere over there'. Everyone who seeks to destroy the life of another people suffers themselves. We are defending life," Zelenskyy concluded.
