Russia-Ukraine war live: Putin jibes at aid for Kyiv as EU battles to agree funding

Watch Vladimir Putin’s news conference live here with translation.

Vladimir Putin has issued updated comments on his oft-made claim that NATO and the allied West forced him to invade Ukraine.

He said: “The unbridled desire to creep towards our borders, taking Ukraine into NATO, all this led to this tragedy. Plus the bloody events in Donbass for eight years – all this led to the tragedy that we are now experiencing. They forced us into these actions…

“What the United States conceived and organized, Europe stands and silently watches, or plays and sings along with them there. Well how can we build relations with them?”

“When internal changes happen (in the United States), when they start respecting other people, other countries, when they start looking for compromise instead of trying to resolve their issues with sanctions and military intervention, then the fundamental conditions will be in place to restore fully-fledged relations. So far, such conditions are not in place, but we are ready for that.”

At his annual news conference, the Russian autocrat said: “There will be peace when we achieve our goals. Let’s return to these goals: they have not changed. I’ll remind you of what we talked about then: the denazification of Ukraine, its demilitarisation, its neutral status.

“As for demilitarisation, if they don’t want to come to an agreement, then we are forced to take other measures, including military ones.

“Or we will agree on certain terms. By the way we agreed on these in talks in Istanbul. But then these agreements were scrapped. But we agreed on this. There are other possibilities – either reach an agreement or resolve it by force. This is what we will strive for.”

Vladimir Putin has claimed that more than 600,000 Russian troops are currently fighting in Ukraine.

He did not provide any evidence. Such figures seem likely to be an overstimate.

Vladimir Putin has claimed that Russia forces are “improving their position” all along the 600–mile frontline – but added that the gains are “modest”.

In Kremlin doublespeak, such an admission is stark.

“Almost along the entire line of contact, our armed forces, let’s say modestly, are improving their position,” Putin said.

“Almost everyone is in an active stage of action, and the situation of our troops is improving throughout.”

Russian forces have gained about 0.08 percent of Ukrainian territory in 2023. They have lost tens of thousands of soldiers in the process, according to US estimates.

Vladimir Putin has been asked “why does your reality differ from ours” during his news conference, though it appears he has decided not to answer that question.

A large blue screen is currently displaying questions from a pool of more than 2 million from journalists and the Russian public.

One question that has just appeared on the screen asked: “Why does your reality differ from ours?”

Another asked: “Mr President, when will the real Russia look like the one on TV?”

Putin does not appear to have answered either.

The questions are a reference to the difference between Russian state media, which is heavily censored by the Kremlin, and online sources of information, which are less regulated.

According to Russian state media, the war in Ukraine has been an outstanding success; less censored outlets online, on Telegram and other platforms, are more honest, though they still undergo some degree of censorship.

Vladimir Putin has alleged that Ukraine is “just sending their men out to be destroyed” in a swipe at their summer counteroffensive.

He said: “The enemy announced a big counteroffensive. none of it worked anywhere. I don’t even know why they do this. They are just sending their men out to be destroyed. It’s a one-way ticket.”

His comments come as thousands of Russians have been wounded or killed after being thrown into a fruitless attack on the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka over the past two months.

Vladimir Putin has claimed that Russia was forced to start the “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Reciting Kremlin favourites, he suggested NATO had encroached upon Russia, that the two revolutions in Ukraine were staged, and that European leaders are deliberately trying to steal away Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin has addressed a group of soldiers allegedly skyping in from the frontline in Ukraine about the importance of patriotism.

He said: “They say wars are won not by fighters but by school teachers. And priests. And that’s correct. Educating people in the spirit of patriotism is critically important and we’re already starting to do this.”

Below are some of the latest photos coming out of Gostinyy Dvor, the exhibition hall in Moscow, near the Kremlin, where Vladimir Putin is holding his first major news conference since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.