Russia is said to be preparing to declare victory in its war with Ukraine within days after Donald Trump‘s harsh comments towards Volodymyr Zelensky were seen to turn the tide of the conflict.

According to Kyiv‘s military intelligence agency, the GUR, Vladimir Putin is expected to frame the announcement as not only a triumph over Ukraine but also over NATO, portraying the conflict as a broader defeat for the West.

Monday marks the third anniversary of a war triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, even though the conflict’s origins date back to 2014 when Putin grabbed Crimea and swathes of eastern Ukraine in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. ‘Russia is preparing to declare an alleged ‘victory’ in the war against Ukraine by the ’round date’ – 24 February 2025, the third anniversary of the beginning of the full-scale war,’ said the GUR agency today.

‘Moreover, these plans may also include a ‘Russian victory over NATO’, as Muscovite propaganda has long described the war against Ukraine as a war with the Alliance.’

The move – if it happens – comes amid intense moves to end the war led by Donald Trump and his administration, but with fears in Europe and Ukraine that a settlement will give the advantage to Russia, rewarding Putin for his military aggression. 

The US President launched a scathing attack on his Ukrainian counterpart this week, blaming him for the war on his country despite Russia being the aggressor. Zelensky in turn accused the US President of falling for Russian fake news.

Trump hit back by labelling Zelensky ‘a dictator without elections’ – despite the Ukrainian leader winning more than 73 per cent of the vote in Ukraine’s 2019 presidential election and only pausing elections because of the war.

Siding with Trump, ally Elon Musk yesterday suggested the Ukrainian president runs a ‘fraud machine feeding off dead bodies of soldiers‘.

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