ALMATY, March 28. /TASS/. Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine is proceeding according to the original plan. There are strict orders from President Vladimir Putin to avoid civilian casualties, Russian Federation Council’s Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said at a meeting with the Speaker of Kazakhstan’s Senate, Maulen Ashimbayev.

"The operation proceeds as planned. Had its aim been the occupation of Ukraine, believe me, several days would have been enough to do that. But at what cost? There are clear orders from Russia’s commander-in-chief to minimize, to avoid civilian casualties," Matviyenko said.

She stressed that all of the tasks of the military operation would be achieved to the full extent. Russia’s army uses surgical strikes to wipe out military infrastructures in Ukrainian territory to "eliminate threats to Russia and not only to Russia."

Matviyenko pointed out that before the beginning of Russia’s military operation there had been confirmed evidence that the authorities in Kiev had been getting ready for a third attempt at the seizure of Donbass. "There is documented proof," Matviyenko said.

"This region (Donbass - TASS) has a population of 4.5 million civilians: women, old people and children. The first two attempts at armed seizure claimed 15,000 lives. We were left with no other choice. We had been saying all along that there should be no weapons supplies to Ukraine, that Ukraine must remain a neutral state, the way it was stated in the first Constitution, when Ukraine was leaving the Soviet Union," Matviyenko said.

On February 24 Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a special military operation in response to the Donbass leaders’ request for help. The Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics began their own operation to regain territories remaining under Kiev’s control.