MOSCOW, March 16. /TASS/. Russia is not going to occupy the territory of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

"The appearance of Russian troops near Kiev and other Ukrainian cities is not connected with the intention to occupy this country. We don’t have such a goal," he said.

Focusing on the decision to launch a special operation in Ukraine, Putin stressed that, according to his assessment, the possibilities to resolve the situation in a diplomatic way were completely exhausted. "We just have no other options to solve the issues peacefully that arise through no fault of our own. In this regard, we were simply forced to launch a special military operation," he concluded.