Mark Rutte believes that russia’s missile strikes on Ukrainian cities are driven by vladimir putin’s desperation over the lack of success on the battlefield.

He made the remarks ahead of the opening of the NATO summit in Ankara.

“I think the message, once again, was how desperate putin is because the Ukrainians are doing well on the battlefield,”, — Mark Rutte said.

According to him, putin is prepared to accept that up to 35,000 russian troops are killed on the battlefield every month.

“From a military perspective, this is important for Ukraine. You have been successful. You are striking the russian economy. You are hitting deep inside russia when it comes to energy infrastructure and russia’s defense-industrial potential”, — the NATO Secretary General said.

Mark Rutte added that russian forces no longer have the capability to achieve major breakthroughs on the front, as they did several months ago.

“Right now, it is something of a stalemate. So what happened last night was an indiscriminate attack on civilians, infrastructure, and cities in Ukraine. People are being killed, but this is not the way russia will ever win this war. Of course, it is terrible for those affected, and my thoughts and prayers are with them, as well as with the people of Kyiv and other cities who have to endure this. But the fact is that you guys have been doing much better over the past few months than you were just three or four months ago”, — he said.

The town of Vyshneve has suffered the most extensive destruction of its residential sector since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. A total of 13 hectares of residential development have been damaged.