Russia’s advance, Oreshnik missile use in Ukraine: Putin’s statements to news agencies

ST. PETERSBURG, June 5. /TASS/. Russian troops continue to advance on a daily basis, with the Russian army having recently taken control of approximately 2,440 square kilometers within the special military operation zone, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday during a meeting organized by TASS with the heads of leading international news agencies.

There have been no combat deployments of Oreshnik missiles, in the true sense of the word, in Ukraine, the president added.

TASS has compiled the president’s key statements on the Ukrainian conflict.

Russian troops are "advancing along the entire line of contact: there is no place where Russian troops have not advanced."

The Russian army has already gained control of 2,440 square kilometers in the special military operation zone, with the advance continuing daily. "The Russian Federation has taken complete control of the Lugansk People’s Republic, 100%. And has taken over 85% of the Donetsk People’s Republic under its control."

The Ukrainian armed forces are catastrophically short of personnel: "The most pressing problem facing the Ukrainian military today is a severe shortage of personnel."

"Recently, the Ukrainian armed forces have lost 100,000 servicemen. Monthly losses amount to about 40,000."

Forced mobilization in Ukraine produces 15-16,000 people per month, "and people there, as you know, are being caught off the streets like stray dogs and forced into the army." Around 20,000 service members desert from the Ukrainian armed forces every month, making this the most significant problem in the Ukrainian army: "Every month [the Ukrainian Armed Forces] lose approximately 10,000 men, and every month there are approximately 20,000 deserters. At the beginning of this year, the number of deserters was approximately 60,000. People are being forcibly taken away; there is no motivation [to fight], no one wants to fight. The almost official figure is 200,000 criminal cases opened for desertion. This is one of the problems [in the Ukrainian army], but the most significant one."

The West provides Ukraine with a large number of drones, some of which, unfortunately, "break through" into Russian territory.

Kiev has the Patriot air defense systems, which are also in acute shortage, but "the system as such does not exist." Russia possesses strike systems, including hypersonic missiles, that Ukraine lacks: "Ukraine does not possess the strike systems that Russia has. I am referring to hypersonic missiles and cruise missiles, which can be launched from the sea, air, or land."

Unlike Ukraine, Russia has p