I wish you health!
Today, I had an important conversation with the military – with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of Defense, the commanders of the Unmanned Systems Forces and the Airborne Assault Forces, and we also spoke with the relevant representatives of the Security Service of Ukraine. We are taking all the necessary steps to make our deep strikes and our Ukrainian mid-range sanctions plan work as effectively as possible. Today, we set additional priorities and adjusted the tasks for August. It is important that there be results. Today marks yet another achievement by our Ukrainian Defense Forces – another facility in Russia’s oil refining industry was hit, and the distance was significant – more than 2,500 kilometers. This was in Tobolsk, in Siberia. Now this region is within reach of our deep strikes. A very significant achievement by our Ukrainian warriors. I thank everyone for their accuracy. There will be more Ukrainian deep strikes, which should demonstrate to Russia and the Russians that peace is necessary. We have Russia's internal polling data showing that the number of people who want this war to end is already increasing. This must become even more apparent. So that Putin, his administration, his FSB henchmen, and everyone else in the aggressor state understand equally well: peace is the only option. Today, I want to thank all the media outlets that care, all the journalists, all the media, all the bloggers, and all the podcasters around the world who show and tell the truth about what is happening in this war and how it is happening. This is the first time in Russia’s history that they no longer have a secure strategic rear. For the first time, they cannot wage war without reinforcements from North Korea. They are now preparing to deploy an additional North Korean contingent on their territory. They have received, just imagine, additional ballistic missiles from North Korea. And everyone around the world must understand what this means. This is not only about the lives of people in Ukraine, and not only about the threats we face. North Korea’s ballistic missiles and their other weapons are being improved through its collaboration with Russia. The more North Korean strikes there are here in Ukraine, in Europe, the more their missiles and soldiers are used, the more they correct their shortcomings and blind spots, the greater the danger will later be for Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Philippines, and other countries in the region. That is why, when we speak about the need for joint action, for coordination and mutual support, when we speak about the need to help us strengthen our air defense, we are also, in fact, speaking about taking away North Korea’s appetite and any interest in coming here – to our land and into our skies – with its weapons in order to learn how to wage war. Everyone across the globe who respects human life must stand together in taking action to protect people.
I spoke today with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. Our team will now be in the region, and there are things in our relations that are already developing well. I am counting on mutual support. There will also be contacts with other countries in the Middle East and the Gulf region.
And one more point.
Work has been ongoing in Odesa all day to restore power. Electricity has already been restored to the majority of consumers, but there is still more work to do. I thank every person in the repair crews, the energy companies, and the State Emergency Service of Ukraine who is involved in this work. As of this evening, nearly 70,000 families were still without power. All necessary forces are involved. There were Russian strikes on energy facilities and other critical infrastructure in the Sumy, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv regions. Everywhere, our services are responding immediately. Thank you for this work. I thank everyone who cares about Ukraine and Ukrainians!
Glory to Ukraine!