A top Russian general made some of the most comprehensive public remarks on Russia’s military strategy in Ukraine to date, declaring on Friday that the “first stage” of their military strategy is now complete, with their primary attention now placed on eastern Ukraine.

“In general, the main tasks of the first stage of the operation have been completed,” Colonel General Sergei Rudskoy, Russia’s first deputy head of staff, stated at a Friday briefing. “The combat potential of the armed forces of Ukraine has been significantly reduced, allowing us, I emphasize again, to focus the main efforts on achieving the main goal — the liberation of Donbas.”

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Rudskoy’s words come at a time when Russia’s gains appear to have stopped near major Ukrainian cities like Kyiv and Kharkiv. Russia has also failed to achieve air superiority in Ukraine and has incurred significant manpower losses since the invasion began.

“The public and individual experts are wondering what we are doing in the area of ​​the blockaded Ukrainian cities,” Rudskoy said.

“These actions are carried out with the aim of causing such damage to military infrastructure, equipment, personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the results of which allow us not only to tie down their forces and prevent them from strengthening their grouping in the Donbas, but also will not allow them to do this until the Russian army completely liberates the territories of the DPR and LNR.”

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Rudskoy was alluding to the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics in eastern Ukraine, which Russia recognised on the eve of its invasion.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that the purpose of the “special military operation” in Ukraine is to completely demilitarise the country. Putin has stated that the conflict is proceeding as planned, but Russian forces have suffered significant losses: In the same briefing, Rudskoy stated that 1,351 military members had been killed and 3,825 had been injured in Ukraine. Russian casualties, according to US, NATO, and Ukrainian officials, are significantly higher.

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“Initially, we did not plan to storm them in order to prevent destruction and minimize losses among personnel and civilians,” Rudskoy said. “And although we do not exclude such a possibility, however, as individual groupings complete the tasks set, and they are successfully solved, our forces and means will be concentrated on the main thing — the complete liberation of Donbas.”

It’s unclear whether Rudskoy’s statement represents a shift in Russian military strategy or simply a shift in public messaging.

Despite strong evidence to the contrary, the Russian military has claimed that it is not targeting civilians or residential areas.