Russia does not plan to topple Ukrainian ruling regime

Maria Zakharova, an official representative for the Russian Foreign Ministry, said that the Russian special operation in Ukraine did not aim to overthrow the current government in the country.

The goal of the operation is to defend the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, to demilitarise and denazify Ukraine and eliminate the military threat to Russia, which comes from Ukraine against the background of NATO’s influence on the post-Soviet state.

“The goals of the operation do not include either the occupation of Ukraine, or the destruction of its statehood, or the toppling of the current government,” Zakharova said, adding that the special operation was not directed against the civilian population.

On March 9, Zakharova noted that Russia’s special operation in Ukraine was going strictly according to plan.