UPDATE 2 - Russian president calls Ukraine's losses in counteroffensive 'catastrophic'

ADDS MORE REMARKS BY RUSSIAN PRESIDENT

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Ukraine's counteroffensive launched earlier this month was unsuccessful and the casualties it suffered were "catastrophic."

Speaking at a meeting with military correspondents in Moscow, Putin said "the enemy had no success at any of the sites.

"I'm not going to name the losses by personnel right now, but the structure of losses is so unfavorable for them that they are approaching an assessment that can be called catastrophic."

Comparing Russian losses, he said military casualties were one in 10, and only 54 Russian tanks were damaged, some of which could be repaired.

On the Ukrainian side, he said 25%-30% of the military equipment they received from the West was destroyed, totaling 160 tanks and 600 armored vehicles.

- No martial law but 'safe zone'

Touching on the ongoing shelling of Russian border regions, Putin said martial law was not needed on the whole territory of the country, but a "buffer zone" could be on the cards if the situation persists.

"If this continues, then we will apparently have to consider the issue -- and I say this very carefully -- in order to create some kind of buffer zone on the territory of Ukraine at such a distance from which it would be impossible to reach our territory," he said.

He also noted that partly, attacks on border regions are connected to a desire to divert Russian forces and resources from those areas that are considered the most important and critical from the point of view of Ukraine's counteroffensive.

Asked about drone attacks on Russian regions and cities, including the capital Moscow, Putin said the traditional air defense system is calibrated for missiles and aircraft, so it is quite difficult for it to detect unmanned aerial vehicles made of modern lightweight materials.

The president said that work is underway to strengthen the border.

"The process is moving quite quickly, and this task of strengthening the borders will also be solved," he said.

As for a possibility to use "sabotage attacks" inside Ukraine, Putin said: "We, unlike Ukraine’s current authorities, cannot employ terrorist methods. We are a state, a country, while it is a regime there. They operate, in fact, as a regime based on terror -- they have a very tough counterintelligence regime, martial law."

The response to Ukraine's raids and sabotage operations is better work by law enforcement, he said.

Asked about the Kakhovka dam collapse, Putin said "the Ukrainian side was striving" to damage it.

"We did not see big explosions, but they purposefully hit the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Station with HIMARS," he said, referring to the US-made High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System.

Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other for the June 6 breach of the dam in southern Ukraine, which flooded swathes of territory.

- Depleted uranium, nuclear escalation

On supplies of ammunition with depleted uranium announced by the US and UK, Putin said if Ukraine starts using them, Russia reserves the right to use them as well.

According to the Russian president Ukraine's army uses some 5,000 shells per day, while the US produces 15,000 per month.

"So they must have emptied reserves of conventional ammunition, but there are still shells with depleted uranium, thus the decision (to deliver them to Ukraine)," he said.

Commenting on the possibility of the supply of tactical nuclear weapons to Ukraine, Putin said the US "pretends" that it has no concerns about possible escalation.

The US “pretends that it is not afraid of (the escalation of the conflict). In fact, there are a lot of people with healthy heads there, and they clearly do not want to lead the case to World War III, in which there will be no winners, including the United States," he said.

- Peace talks

Putin said the Russian "special military operation" strikes on Ukraine's energy system and the destruction of the headquarters of its military intelligence is "a response" to the crossing of "red lines" designated by Moscow.

"We said many times -- don't do this, do not. Let's negotiate. We are ready for talks…They started this war (in 2014), and we are trying to stop it, but we have to do it with the help of the armed forces," he said.

He pointed out that Russia has never refused negotiations that could lead to a peaceful settlement, noting that the key to peace is "on the side of the US."

"If they (the US) really want today's conflict to end through talks, they only need to make one decision -- to stop supplying weapons and equipment. Ukrainians do not produce anything themselves. They will want to negotiate tomorrow. No longer formally, but essentially," he said.

The president also noted that at the talks in Istanbul in 2022, in particular, the security issues of Ukraine were discussed in detail.