Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov says Russia is in a state of war, Russian media reports.
"We are in a state of war. Yes, it started as a special military operation, but as soon as this gang was formed there, when the collective West became involved on the side of Ukraine, it became a war for us. I am convinced of this. And everyone should understand this for their internal mobilization," Putin's spokesman said.
He claims that Russia will continue the war "so that the military potential of Ukraine cannot threaten the security of Russian citizens and its territory." He reminded that the Russian Federation considers all the territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions to be "its territory."
According to Peskov, they need to be "liberated" from the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Peskov also said that Moscow "cannot allow the existence of a state on its borders that has a documented intention to use any methods to take Crimea, not to mention the territories of new regions (meaning the seized territories of Ukraine, the annexation of which was announced by Russia in 2022)."
