“If today we had the opportunity to take these territories, we might have done that. We understand that these can be huge sacrifices, especially among the civilian population. We cannot go for it, ”RIA Novosti quoted Danilov as saying.
He noted that "the diplomatic path remains."
Earlier, the head of the Ukrainian community of Crimea Anastasia Gridchina said that the leader of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky, needs to abandon claims to the Crimea.
Crimea became the Russian region after a referendum held there in March 2014, in which most residents spoke out for reunification with Russia.