Putin Isn't Finished Annexing New Ukraine Land Despite Kremlin Claims: ISW

The Kremlin isn't being completely truthful about its intentions regarding the potential annexation of additional Ukrainian territories, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday that while Russian forces intend to fully occupy four already-annexed eastern and southern territories, he appeared to set limitations to the amount of Ukrainian territory that Russia may want to claim as its own as part of the country's ongoing invasion of the Eastern European country.

In September, Russia annexed four Ukrainian territories—Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson—following referendums denigrated as illegitimate by Western governments.

"There is no question of that. At least, there have been no statements in this regard," Peskov said. "But there is nevertheless a lot of work ahead to liberate the territories; in a number of new regions of the Russian Federation there are occupied territories that have to be liberated."

In its December 8 assessment of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the ISW, a U.S.-based think tank, said the Kremlin "likely has not abandoned its maximalist objectives in Ukraine" despite Peskov's first-time acknowledgement regarding the four territories.

Although Peskov said no talks are currently ongoing regarding the annexation of additional territories, he reiterated the Kremlin's pursuit of "demilitarization" and "denazification" objectives in Ukraine.

The "denazification" aspect would equate to regime change, while "demilitarization" would be a result of Ukraine's inability to defend itself from Russian attacks while being simultaneously unable to use military aggression as part of its own offensive.

"The Kremlin's objectives, in other words, continue to remain unchanged from those set following the Russian withdrawal from Kyiv," the ISW wrote in its assessment. "Peskov's comments were not an inflection in Russian war aims or demands. Putin's invocation of Russian imperial history on December 7 and his recent remarks regarding Russia's role as the only 'guarantee of Ukrainian sovereignty' are further indicators that the Kremlin is setting conditions for a protracted war aimed at eradicating Ukrainian sovereignty. The Kremlin's deliberately inconsistent messaging is part of a persistent information operation intended to mislead the West into pushing Kyiv to negotiate and offer preemptive concessions."

The ISW added that Putin "may be deliberately distancing his rhetoric from nationalists' unrealistic demands for the Russian war efforts in Ukraine."

Meanwhile, the Russian leader told hand-picked Human Rights Council members on Wednesday that the war could go on for a long time. He added that while the nuclear threat is "growing," he views nuclear warfare as self-defense and in a "retaliatory" manner.

Putin also touted the annexation of the four Ukrainian territories, saying that it proves that citizens in those territories want to be in Russia.

A purportedly intoxicated Putin on Thursday blamed "nonsense" and "fakes" for misinterpreting Russia's military operation, blaming Ukraine for causing his country to attack its critical infrastructure.

"The Kremlin has been increasingly attempting to reorient public opinion to favor its official messaging, and Putin's December 8 statement may aim to diminish or marginalize the milbloggers to re-establish the perception that the Kremlin maintains a 'moderate' and authoritative position," the ISW said.

Newsweek reached out to the Kremlin for comment.