Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the Russian army is currently working to create a buffer zone along the border with Ukraine, while Kiev and Moscow announced the delivery of the lists of prisoners of war as part of an expected exchange deal.
Putin added during a meeting with members of the Russian government via the video: “I have said that a decision has been taken regarding the establishment of the necessary insulating security zone along the border,” stressing that the Russian army “is currently working to implement it.”
Putin accused the Ukrainian forces of “choosing targets of no military importance,” and said: “The enemy usually chooses targets that are not military importance, civilian targets, homes, people. Today’s events confirm what I just said.”
He stated that “the Russian army strongly targets hostile shootings and work continues in this way,” stressing the importance of “removing mines in the border areas” and “the most important to ensure security.”
He added: “There is a separate issue, which is the most important to ensure security and protect people’s lives and their health, which is to remove mines from the areas that witnessed military operations. Removing unexploded shells, mines and weapons hides left by the militants. I repeat, we are talking about the province of Korsk, and the Breansk and Biljorod boycott, which were also bombed.”
The Russian Ministry of Defense announced, on Thursday, that the air defenses shot down 105 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions, dozens of which were heading towards Moscow, while the Ukrainian Air Force stated that damage occurred in the Dnipropterrovsk region, after an attack but did not specify the type of weapon used.
These statements came after the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced on Thursday that Russia handed Ukraine a list of a thousand prisoners of war that wanted to recover in a future exchange deal.
