Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia is only just getting into its war with Ukraine, even though the conflict has dragged on for 130 days and Moscow’s armed forces are suffering heavy casualties.
The Associated Press reported on Putin’s remarks at a session of the Kremlin parliament, where the Russian leader said it was clear that “the West wants to fight us to the last Ukrainian.”
“It’s a tragedy for the Ukrainian people, but it looks like things are headed in that direction,” Putin said, according to the outlet. “Everyone should know that, by and large, we haven’t even started anything seriously,” he added.
According to the AP, Putin added that a continued refusal to submit to peace talks would make it more difficult for Ukraine to reach an agreement with Russia.
“We hear that they want to defeat us on the battlefield,” Putin added, referring to Ukraine. “Let them try.”
At the same meeting, Putin claimed that the West was still trying to divide Russian society and demoralize its people. “The tide of history is unstoppable and attempts by the collective West to impose its version of the global order are doomed,” Putin said, according to the AP.
Putin revealed in June that one of his goals for the Ukraine war is to expand Russian territory. Speaking to students, he compared himself to Russia’s first emperor, Peter the Great, saying they were both destined to make Russia grow.
Putin’s warning to Ukraine and the West comes a week after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for Russia’s expulsion from the United Nations, calling it a “terrorist” state.
Putin also warned in June Western allies Finland and Sweden – who are now set to join NATO and end their neutrality in Europe – that Russia would respond “in kind” if the two countries started hosting the alliance’s military infrastructure .