LONDON, April 8. /TASS/. The Russian authorities hope the special operation in Ukraine would be completed in the near future, either through negotiations or by military means, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with Sky News.

"Our military are doing their best to bring an end to that operation. And we do hope that in coming days, in foreseeable future, this operation will reach its goals, or we’ll finish it by negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian delegations," he said.

Speaking about de-escalation in the Kiev and Chernigov areas, Peskov said it was a goodwill gesture, intended to create favorable conditions for continuing negotiations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address on February 24 that in response to a request from the heads of the Donbass republics, he had decided to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine in order to protect people "who have been suffering from the Kiev regime’s abuse and genocide for eight years." The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans to occupy the Ukrainian territory.