Russia's ** Putin ordered a "special military operation" against Ukraine, triggering the worst war crisis in Europe. For more than a year, Russian forces have waged fierce fighting in the Donbas region of eastern and southern Ukraine, occupying large swathes of territory, causing tens of thousands of deaths and **, as well as the displacement of millions. Recently, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu delivered an important speech at the enlarged meeting of the Ministry of Defense, announcing that the Russian army is the most combat-effective army in the world today, and will fully complete the military operation against Ukraine next year to realize Russia's strategic interests.
In his speech, Shoigu spoke highly of the combat effectiveness and achievements of the Russian army, saying that the Russian army is the most well-trained and most combat-effective army in the world, and has advanced ** that has been tested in actual combat. He said that the Russian army has the ability to quickly and appropriately respond to the actions of any current enemy, and more than 650,000 servicemen have gained combat experience. He also said that Russia's modern ** equipment has withstood rigorous tests during the special military operation, and its performance is superior to that of similar ** equipment of NATO countries. He pointed out that despite the sanctions imposed by Western countries, Russia has more high-tech production than NATO countries, Russia has taken "unprecedented measures" in the renewal of military equipment and social security for servicemen, military industrial enterprises are operating around the clock, and production capacity has quadrupled.
Shoigu also summed up the phased results of the special military operation, including territorial, energy, political and other aspects. He said Russian forces had captured one-fifth of Ukraine's land in a matter of months, including Mariupol and Zaporizhzhia in the south and Donetsk and Luhansk in the east. He said the area of the four districts is more than 830,000 square kilometers with a population of about 5 million have been incorporated into the territory of the Russian Federation. He also said that the Sea of Azov became an inland sea of Russia, a land corridor to Crimea was opened, and railway traffic with Donbass was restored. He pointed out that these achievements not only safeguard Russia's compatriots and interests, but also guarantee Russia's energy security and economic development. He said that Russia has taken control of Ukraine's main energy infrastructure, including nuclear power plants, transmission lines, gas pipelines, etc., making Ukraine an energy vassal of Russia. He also said that Russia has broken Western support and interference in Ukraine, making Ukraine a political vassal of Russia. He said that Russia has forced Ukraine to accept Russia's constitution, laws, currency, language, etc., making Ukraine a cultural vassal of Russia.
Shoigu also gave a briefing on the priorities of the Ministry of Defense for next year, first of all, continuing to advance the special military operation until the tasks assigned by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief are fully fulfilled. He said that the goal for next year is to completely eliminate the armed forces of Ukraine, clear all resistance forces in Ukraine, stabilize the situation in Ukraine and restore normal life in Ukraine. He said that in order to achieve this goal, the Russian army will intensify its military strikes on Ukraine, while at the same time strengthening its control and influence over Ukraine's political, economic, social, cultural and other aspects. He said that the Russian army will fight for the interests of Russia at any cost, for the honor of Russia, for the future of Russia.
Shoigu's speech caused a strong reaction from the international community, and Western countries and the Ukrainian side expressed strong condemnation and ** of Russia's aggression and threats, calling on Russia to immediately stop military operations against Ukraine, respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, resume the implementation of the Minsk agreements, and resolve the Russian-Ukrainian conflict through peaceful means. Western countries and the Ukrainian side also said that they will continue to exert maximum pressure and sanctions on Russia, and at the same time strengthen support and assistance to Ukraine to jointly resist Russia's aggression and provocations.