 Russia-Ukraine conflict is a civil war. Putin. Russia has been trying for decades to build normal relations with Ukraine at any cost But this was made impossible after the coup d'etat in 2014 Russian president Vladimir Putin said during a live marathon press conference The president was asked if he could foresee a normalization of relations with the West in the near future Putin responded by stressing that Russia has never tried to intentionally ruin or sever ties with any nation Instead it was the West that spoiled relations with Russia by constantly trying to push the country aside and Neglecting its national interests. Putin said the culmination of that was the coup d'etat in Ukraine That was staged by Russia's geopolitical opponents in 2014 Which has ultimately led to the current situation according to the president Putin described the ongoing conflict in Ukraine as a great tragedy that is essentially a civil war between brothers He stressed that at their core in spite of the current hostilities Russians and Ukrainians are one people Putin outlined the main goals for achieving peace with Ukraine There will be peace when we achieve our goals one of the main goals is De-nazification and de-militarization of Ukraine Putin said he also recalled that the issues of peace were discussed at the Negotiating table with Istanbul, but they turned out to be inconclusive according to him Russia has destroyed 747 tanks and 2300 armored vehicles of the Ukrainian armed forces since the beginning of the Ukrainian counter offensive