In the past week, Russian forces liberated six towns in Sumy, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions.

On Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said peace negotiations would continue despite Ukrainian sabotage operations on Russian soil.

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“Contacts will continue. Are provocations possible from the Kyiv regime? Yes, they are. The Kyiv regime is highly unpredictable,” he said, adding that the parties would agree on a date for a third round of talks, likely to be held in Istanbul next week.

“Despite the unpredictability of the Kyiv regime, our Foreign Ministry maintains that expert-level dialogue is necessary in any case. This view is supported by the president. That is why dialogue continues,” Peskov stated.

The Kremlin spokesman emphasized that “the outcome of previous rounds was important,” even though no political progress was made—only agreements on prisoner swaps and the exchange of soldiers’ remains.

“Many of our boys have been able to return home from captivity,” Peskov said, adding, “For us, it would be ideal to achieve our goals through political and diplomatic means. But as long as that doesn’t work, we will continue the special military operation.”

In the past week, Russian forces liberated six towns in Sumy, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, inflicting 5,500 casualties on Ukrainian troops. Additionally, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that its military downed about 1,200 Ukrainian drones, including 562 over Russian territory.

President Putin declared a month ago that Moscow was establishing a “buffer zone” in northern Ukraine to protect Russian border areas. In recent months, Russian troops launched a new ground offensive in the Kharkiv and Sumy regions.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: EFE

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