MOSCOW—Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that there would be no peace in Ukraine until the Kremlin achieves its objectives, which have not altered despite almost two years of conflict that has heightened tensions between Moscow and the West.
Speaking at a year-end news conference, Mr. Putin gave some rare details on what Moscow calls its “special military operation.”
He questioned the need for a second wave of reserve mobilization to fight in Ukraine. He stated that there are around 617,000 Russian servicemen there, including approximately 244,000 troops called up to fight alongside professional military units.
“There will be peace when we will achieve our goals,” Mr. Putin said, repeating a frequent Kremlin line. “Victory will be ours.”
Mr. Putin, who has been in power for nearly 24 years and declared last week that he will compete for reelection, was met with cheers as he entered the auditorium in downtown Moscow.
This year, regular residents could phone in questions alongside journalists, and Russian official media said that at least 2 million questions for Mr. Putin had been sent ahead of time.
Mr. Putin is being questioned by Western media for the first time since the conflict in Ukraine began.
The news conference began with questions regarding Ukraine and emphasized some Russians' anxieties about another wave of mobilization.
“There is no need” for mobilization now, Mr. Putin said, because 1,500 men are being recruited into the army every day. As of Wednesday evening, 486,000 soldiers have signed a contract with the Russian military, he said.
He reiterated that Moscow’s goals in Ukraine—“de-Nazification, de-militarization, and a neutral status” of Ukraine—remain unchanged. He had spelled out those objectives the day he sent troops into its neighbor in February 2022.
Mr. Putin has also asked Ukraine to remain neutral and not join NATO.
Mr. Putin's last press conference was in 2021, when the United States warned that Russia was on the verge of sending soldiers into Ukraine. He postponed his annual State of the Union speech until February of this year.
Since then, relations between Russia and the United States have deteriorated to new lows as the dispute has persisted, particularly when Moscow imprisoned American journalist Evan Gershkovich during a reporting trip to Russia in March.
A Russian court determined just before Mr. Putin's speech that Mr. Gershkovich, 32, must remain in custody until at least January 30.
Paul Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan, has also been imprisoned in Russia since his detention on espionage-related accusations in 2018.
Russia recently rejected an offer to return Mr. Gershkovich and Mr. Whelan, both of whom the US government has considered illegally held.
“We’re not refusing to return them,” Mr. Putin said Thursday, adding that he wanted to reach an agreement but “it’s not easy.”
He refused to go into details of any exchange but said Washington “must hear us” and make an offer that satisfies Russia.
He also took questions from a group of students in Crimea about the leaky roof and mildew in their sports hall, as well as a woman who called him as "my favorite president" to express her displeasure with the rising cost of eggs.
“I regret and apologize about that. A glitch in the work of the government,” Mr. Putin replied, explaining that egg production has not matched demand and blaming the government for not increasing imports quickly enough.
Mr. Putin was asked whether he utilizes body doubles by an artificial intelligence version of himself, communicating with his face and voice—a topic of heated curiosity among Kremlin observers. Mr. Putin dismissed the notion.
“Only one person should look like myself and talk in my voice—that person is going to be me,” he said, deadpanning: “By the way, this is my first double.”
Journalists waited in frigid weather for hours before Mr. Putin arrived, and some dressed up in traditional attire, including extravagant hats, to capture his notice. Many journalists carried banners, leading the Kremlin to limit the size of them.
