Russian State Duma says it sees no prospect of war ending in 2026
The Russian State Duma has said it sees no prospect of the war against Ukraine ending in 2026. It claims that hostilities must continue until the goals set by the Russian leadership are achieved.
The Moscow Times reported this, citing a statement by Viktor Sobolev, a member of the Russian State Duma Defence Committee and a reserve lieutenant general, according to Censor.NET. He said there were no grounds to expect the war to end this year.
Sobolev said Russia must achieve the goals of its so-called "special military operation". In particular, he said it would be desirable for Russian forces to reach Ukraine’s western borders, claiming that a "security zone" was needed because of the increasing range of drones.
The Russian lawmaker also opposed a possible ceasefire. He claimed that halting hostilities now would lead to an even larger-scale war in the future.
