“The Kyiv regime is trying to prevent the situation from taking a catastrophic turn, and it appears those trends are already emerging,” the leader said while answering questions from Zarubin for the program *Vesti*.

Putin detailed that Russian troops “are not only continuing their offensive across all operational fronts but have also increased the pace of their advance.”

Commenting on recent Russian attacks, the head of state noted that “the Kyiv authorities themselves let the genie out of the bottle and began attacking civilian enterprises, publicly declaring their goal of destroying the Russian economy,” and are consequently facing a response.

At the same time, the actions of the Russian army are, of course, far more significant and far more destructive, he asserted.

Since February 24, 2022, Russia has been conducting a special military operation in Ukraine; according to Putin, its objectives are to protect the population of the Donbas from “genocide by the Kyiv regime” and to counter the national security risks posed by the eastward expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Ukrainian troops receive military support from that 32-nation alliance, led by the United States and comprising the United Kingdom and the majority of European Union nations.

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