President Putin Says There Is No Need To Mobilize Amid Ukrainian Counterattacks

JAKARTA - President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday he saw no need to mobilize additional troops to fight in Ukraine for now, amid a retaliatory attack by the Kyiv army.

However, President Putin said it all depends on what Russia wants to achieve there and he asked if Moscow troops should try to take Kyiv again.

"There is no such need at this time," President Putin said in a televised meeting of Russian war correspondents and military bloggers, when asked about mobilization after last year he announced what he called a "partial mobilization" of 300,000 reserve troops.

President Putin further said that the Ministry of Defense did not see any need to mobilize again.

"Some community leaders say that we need to add 1 million or two million," said President Putin.

"It depends on what we want," he continued.

"Should we go back there?" asked President Putin about Kyiv, which Russian forces failed to capture in the early stages of what Moscow called a "special military operation" in Ukraine.

On the occasion, President Putin also said Russia needed to fight enemy agents and increase its defenses against attacks within its own territory. However, he said Russia did not need to follow the example of Ukraine and declared martial law.

"There is no reason to impose some kind of special regime or military emergency in this country," said President Putin.

"There is no need for anything like that today," he continued, stressing.

Ukraine's large-scale retaliatory attacks began on June 4 and have not been successful in any area, Putin said, adding that the Ukrainian side was 10 times greater than Russia.

Ukraine has lost more than 160 tanks and 25 - 30 percent of vehicles supplied from abroad, he said. Meanwhile, Russia only lost 54 tanks. Reuters was unable to independently verify its statement.

Putin also said Ukraine had deliberately hit the Kakhovka dam on June 6 with HIMARS rockets supplied by the United States, a move that he said had also hampered Kyiv's counter-attack efforts.

"Russia's goal in Ukraine may evolve along with the existing situation, but their fundamental character will not change," concluded Putin.