Zelenskyy: Putin has promised to take Donetsk 'soon' for the 17th or 18th time
President Zelenskyy says Russia has spent nearly five years trying to seize Donetsk, suffering about 249,000 troops killed or severely wounded this year for barely over 1,000 square kilometers of territorial gains.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russian President Vladimir Putin has once again promised his forces would capture Donetsk region soon — by Zelenskyy's count, the 17th or 18th such promise.
According to Zelenskyy, Russia has been trying to seize Donetsk for almost five years, at an enormous cost. In this year alone, Russian forces have suffered roughly 249,000 troops killed or severely wounded, while gaining only slightly more than 1,000 square kilometers of territory.
The figures cited by Zelenskyy underscore how slow and costly Russia's advance toward Donetsk has remained, despite repeated Kremlin assurances that the region's full capture is imminent.
