Plans revealed this week by Ukrainian intelligence services indicate Russia intends to extend the war well into 2026 and take over vast territories that run well beyond its public demands for a formal ceasefire.

Ukrainian Presidential Office Deputy Head Colonel Pavlo Palisa told reporters on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to take over Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts by September 1 and build a buffer zone at the northern Ukrainian-Russian border by the close of 2025.

“They [Russia] have plans even for 2026. The plan for next year is to occupy the whole part of Ukraine which is situated on the left bank of the Dnipro River,” he said.

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