Putin held a meeting on the situation in the free zone. The main thing

On December 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin convened a meeting on the situation in the special military operation zone and proposed discussing the state of affairs on the line of contact. The main statements of the Russian leader are in the material of Izvestia.

About the meeting

At a meeting on Monday, Putin proposed discussing the state of affairs on the line of contact.

"Today we will hold a regular meeting on the development of the situation in the special military operation zone. Our meeting is taking place on the eve of the New Year. This is the time when the results of the work are traditionally summarized during an expanded meeting of the board of the Ministry of Defense. The Minister of Defense elaborated on the results achieved in the outgoing year 2025, and the Chief of the General Staff also did this. Today, we will focus on the current state of affairs on the line of contact," Putin said.

On the advance of Russian troops

The Russian president pointed to the offensive of Russian troops in the direction of the state border in the DPR.

"After the liberation of Krasnoarmeysk and Dimitrov, the Center group of troops completes the liquidation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces group encircled there and at the same time develops an offensive towards the state border, the border of the Donetsk People's Republic," he said.

He spoke about the situation in the combat zone of the Vostok group: "The situation in the combat zone of the Vostok group in the Zaporizhia region is also developing favorably. The group's troops, having crossed the Gaichur River, broke through the enemy's defenses and are developing an offensive towards Zaporizhia at a good pace."

Putin also noted that the groups "West" and "South" are working effectively. The president paid special attention to Kupyansk.

"The enemy's attempts to prevent the development of the situation in Kupyansk itself must be resolutely suppressed," the president said.

The Head of State pointed out that the tasks of liberating Donbass, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions are being carried out in stages, in accordance with the plan of a special military operation.

"Of course, the decisive role in the successes of the Russian Armed Forces at the front belongs to our soldiers and officers, who, liberating the land of Donbass, show courage and heroism on a daily basis, risking themselves," the Russian leader said.

About the plans for 2026

The President instructed to continue work in 2026 on the creation of a security zone in the border regions of the Russian Federation in the area of the Central Military District.

"This is a very important task, as it ensures the security of Russia's border regions. And in 2026, of course, we need to continue this work," Putin said.

The Head of State instructed the troops to continue fulfilling their military operations tasks in accordance with the plans of the Russian General Staff.