MOSCOW, July 17. /TASS/. After receiving Western weapons, the Ukrainian Armed Forces were told to target Russian settlements and civilians with them, Major General Apty Alaudinov, deputy chief of the Russian Armed Forces’ military and political department and commander of the Akhmat special forces unit, said.

"It turns out that after receiving all these weapons, they [Ukraine’s armed forces] were given specific instructions to hit only populated localities, civilians, causing as much harm to the civilian population as possible. Therefore, we have to understand that what is going on is just a sign of the agony Ukrainian formations are experiencing, coming to the realization that they cannot defeat us on the frontline," he told Channel One television.

Speaking about the possibility of a peace agreement, Alaudinov indicated that "nobody is going to come running to Zelensky or whoever else".