(ANSA) - MOSCOW, 18 JAN - Russian President Vladimir Putin has defined the bloody invasion of Ukraine that he ordered "an attempt to stop the war" in Donbass that began in 2014, reports the Interfax news agency.
Tens of thousands of people, including scores of civilians, are estimated to have died in the conflict in Ukraine since the invasion by Russian troops that began in February last year.
"Everything we are doing today, including during the special military operation, is an attempt to stop this war" in Donbass.
"This is the meaning of our operation," Putin said at a meeting dedicated to the siege of Leningrad.
(HANDLE).