Special operation to end after Russia achieves its goals, Kremlin says

Russia’s special operation in Ukraine will end as soon as Moscow achieves its goals in one way or another, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a news briefing, calling such a march of events an alternativeless option, Azernews reports.

"Any war ends in peace one way or another," the Kremlin spokesman commented on Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky's statements that the conflict would end sooner than expected.

"For us there is absolutely no alternative to achieving our set goals," Peskov emphasized. "As soon as these goals have been achieved in one way or another, the special military operation will be completed."

Zelensky said in an interview with ABC that the end of the conflict in his country was closer than many believed. He argued that some "victory plan" he proposed on the basis of his own "peace formula" was a means to achieve a settlement. Moscow has repeatedly criticized Kiev’s "formula" as unrealistic and pointed to the need for taking into account the realities on the ground. Also, Russia supported the peace plan proposed by China and Brazil, which Ukraine criticized as "unrealistic" and not corresponding to the "peace formula."