Putin tells Russia 'victory will be ours' as Ukraine takes centre stage at EU summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin says there will be no peace in Ukraine until the Kremlin realises its goals, which remain unchanged after nearly two years of fighting that has sent tensions soaring between Moscow and the West.

Speaking at his annual end-of-year news conference that offered him an opportunity to reinforce his grip on power, Putin gave some rare details on what Moscow calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine.  

He dismissed the need for a second wave of mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine – a move that has been deeply unpopular.

He said there are some 617,000 Russian soldiers there, including around 244,000 troops who were called up to fight alongside professional military forces.

“There will be peace when we will achieve our goals,” Putin said, repeating a frequent Kremlin line. “Victory will be ours.”

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Putin, who has held power for nearly 24 years and announced last week he is running for re-election, was greeted with applause as he arrived in the hall in central Moscow.

He didn't hold his traditional press conference last year after his military failed to take Kyiv and as the Ukrainian army retook territory in the east and south of the country. 

But with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky now forced to plead for more US aid, a stalling counteroffensive and reports of fracturing Western support for Kyiv, he decided to face the media once more – although the session is heavily choreographed and is more about spectacle than scrutiny.

Second mobilisation?

This year, ordinary citizens had the chance to phone in questions along with those from journalists, and Russian state media said at least 2 million questions for Putin had been submitted ahead of time. 

It is the first time Putin, who has heavily limited his interaction with foreign media, faced questions from Western journalists since the fighting in Ukraine began.

The news conference opened with questions about Ukraine and highlighted concerns some Russians have about another wave of mobilisation.

“There is no need” for mobilisation now, Putin said, because 1,500 men are being recruited into the army every day.

As of Wednesday evening, 486,000 soldiers have signed a contract with the Russian military, he said.

Putin's remarks about another wave of mobilisation were met with scepticism by some independent Russian media, which pointed out that he had promised not to draft reservists for Ukraine and then reversed course and ordered a “partial” call-up.

The move, which he announced in September 2022, prompted thousands of Russians to leave the country.

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Zelensky warns EU not to stall

He reiterated that Moscow's goals in Ukraine — “de-Nazification, de-militarization and a neutral status” of Ukraine — remain unchanged. He had spelled out those loosely defined objectives the day he sent troops into its neighbour in February 2022.

The claim of “de-Nazification” refers to Russia's allegations that Ukraine's government is heavily influenced by radical nationalist and neo-Nazi groups — an allegation derided by Kyiv and the West.

Putin has also demanded that Ukraine remain neutral and refrain from joining NATO.

This comes as Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky warned European leaders earlier on Thursday that Vladimir Putin would exploit any failure to agree to launch his country's EU membership talks.

Zelensky told an EU summit by videolink: "People in Europe won't see any benefit if Moscow receives a pass from Brussels in the form of negativity towards Ukraine. Putin will surely use this against you personally, and against all of Europe."

The EU's 27 leaders are focused in Brussels on granting Kyiv a four-year €50billion funding package and an agreement to launch formal EU talks for Ukraine on joining the bloc.

But Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban is threatening to veto EU membership talks for Ukraine, as he is a vocal supporter of Vladimir Putin.