Russian forces are pushing back Ukrainian troops along the front line and are set to deliver new victories before the end of the year, President Vladimir Putin has said.

The Russian leader outlined the state of the fighting against Kiev during his annual Q&A session on Friday, adding that he was “certain that before the year’s end we will witness new successes of our armed forces, our fighters.”

Russian forces have fully seized the strategic initiative after ousting Ukrainian troops from Kursk Region in the spring, Putin stated. Kiev launched the incursion last year, claiming it would strengthen its position during eventual peace talks.

After liberating the city of Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) in early December, Russia obtained a staging ground for further advances into what Putin called Kiev’s main fortified area in Donbass, encompassing urbanized lands between the cities of Slavyansk, Kramatorsk, and Konstantinovka. The latter is already being contested by Russian troops, he said.

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