Zelenskyy says Russia has postponed deadline for full occupation of Donetsk region for 15th time

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday said Russia had postponed its deadline for the full occupation of the Donetsk region for the 15th time since the start of the full-scale invasion, with the latest target date now set for December 31, 2026.

Zelenskyy said the Kremlin had repeatedly failed to meet its own military objectives in Donbas, recalling that Moscow had previously set numerous deadlines throughout 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.

"Russia's political leadership constantly dreams about Donbas. They have already had this illusion 15 times – that they would fully capture Donbas," he said.

Zelenskyy said Russia initially planned to complete the occupation of the Donetsk region by March 31, 2026, later postponed the deadline to September 1 and has now moved it to December 31.

The President also said Kyiv had repeatedly proposed frameworks for ending the war, but accused Moscow of rejecting genuine peace efforts in favour of continuing its offensive.

"If Putin wants to sacrifice another million of his soldiers by throwing them against the same wall, then those Russian citizens who have not yet been mobilised should think about what awaits them," Zelenskyy said.