Putin's first statement after winning the election about the war in Ukraine

After winning overwhelmingly in the Russian presidential election, Mr. Putin made his first statements about the war situation in Ukraine.

Speaking at his election campaign headquarters on the evening of March 17, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the country's armed forces are making daily progress in Ukraine and are taking the initiative on the battlefield.

According to Mr. Putin, Ukraine's offensive operations are ineffective and in some directions, Russian soldiers are overwhelming the enemy.

Asked about the recent shelling of Russia’s Belgorod region, Putin said he did not rule out the possibility that Russia would have to establish a “clean zone” (buffer zone) in Ukrainian-controlled territories to prevent further attacks.

In his first speech after winning the election, Mr. Putin also expressed his gratitude to all Russian people who voted in the 8th presidential election.

Mr. Putin emphasized that the source of the country's strength is the Russian people, and the common will of the people of the whole country is formed from the voice of each citizen.

President Putin also affirmed that there are conditions for Russia to become stronger. He said: “There are conditions to go further, to make Russia more solid, stronger, more effective.”

President Putin said that the events that Russia is going through now have directly affected the high voter turnout in the election.

Mr. Putin also said that he is currently very happy to be with like-minded people who support him and have common goals.

According to the results announced on the electronic board of the Central Election Commission of Russia (CEC), after counting 82.76% of the votes, independent candidate Vladimir Putin won 87.18% of the votes.

Coming in second was Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) candidate Nikolai Kharitonov, winning 4.23% of the vote.

Next was candidate Vladislav Davankov of the “New People” Party, who received 4.02% of the votes, and finally the candidate of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) Leonid Slutsky, who received 3.16% of the votes.

Previously, at 9:00 p.m. on March 17, Moscow time (1:00 a.m. on March 18, Hanoi time), the last polling stations in the Russian Federation presidential election in the westernmost province of Kaliningrad closed, ending the 8th presidential election in the Russian Federation lasting 3 days from March 15 to 17.

According to data published by the CEC on its bulletin board, as of 8 p.m. on March 17, the total number of voters who voted in person nationwide was 73.33%. This figure does not include the number of voters who voted remotely online.

According to VNA

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/phat-bieu-dau-tien-cua-ong-putin-sau-khi-thang-cu-ve-chien-su-o-ukraine-post731220.html