MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that his armed forces in Ukraine are protecting "national interests" and pledged "unchanged" determination to strengthen the nation's military in the changing world order.
This came against the backdrop of the third anniversary of Russia's war against Ukraine, which is on February 24.
"Today, at the risk of their lives and with courage, they (soldiers) are resolutely defending their homeland, national interests, and Russia's future," Putin said in a video released by the Kremlin on Russia's Defenders of the Fatherland Day.
"We will continue to improve the combat capabilities of the army and navy, their combat readiness as an essential component of Russia's security, and guarantee of its present and future sovereignty," he said, according to a report in the nation's leading daily, The Moscow Times.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov this week held talks in Riyadh with a United States delegation represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff in a bid to improve their ties and negotiate talks to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict. (IANS)
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