Putin vows victory in Ukraine war in defiant New Year address to nation

Russian President Vladimir Putin used his New 12 months’s speech to ship a blunt message to the West and to his personal troops: Russia is not going to withdraw from Ukraine.

As 2026 dawned in Russia’s far jap areas, Putin vowed victory within the practically four-year battle, praising Russian troopers and describing the battle as a combat for the nation’s survival — whilst america steps up diplomatic efforts to finish the bloodshed.

“We consider in you and our victory,” Putin stated in a speech broadcast nationally and launched by the Kremlin on Wednesday. Addressing the troops straight, he congratulated “all our troopers and commanders” and pledged continued assist for what Moscow calls its “particular navy operation.”

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Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers his New 12 months’s speech from the Kremlin, promising victory within the battle in Ukraine. (East2West)

Putin has portrayed the battle as a combat for Russia’s homeland, “fact and justice,” demonstrating dedication to proceed regardless of mounting losses and worldwide stress.

In a separate message, former President Dmitry Medvedev – Putin’s Safety Council deputy – stated of victory in Ukraine: “I sincerely consider it’s shut.” Following Putin, he spoke of ‘our nice and invincible Russia’.

The defiant tone sounds because the battle approaches grim milestones. On January 12, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will surpass the 1,418 days the Soviet Union fought Nazi Germany in Europe throughout World Warfare II. On February 24, the battle will enter its fourth 12 months. Western estimates put the variety of useless and injured at greater than 1 million – a determine disputed by the Kremlin.

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The mom of a Russian soldier killed in navy motion in Ukraine kneels at a tree planted in reminiscence of her son within the Alley of Heroes in Sevastopol, Crimea, Saturday, February 25, 2023. (AP photograph)

Putin’s rhetoric was in stark distinction to the renewed diplomatic exercise led by Washington.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with US President Donald Trump on Sunday at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, because the White Home explores doable paths to finish Europe’s greatest land battle since World Warfare II.

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US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake fingers at a press convention after assembly at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago membership on December 28, 2025 in Palm Seashore, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Pictures)

After the assembly, Trump stated Ukraine and Russia had been “nearer than ever” to peace, whereas acknowledging that main obstacles – notably territorial disputes – stay unresolved. Reuters reported individually that Trump and Zelenskyy mentioned the doable involvement of US troops as a part of broader safety assurances, though no selections had been introduced.

Reuters contributed to this report.