Deputy head of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev. (File photo by Sputnik)

Russia’s former president Dmitry Medvedev has said Russian troops will gain more new regions in Ukraine, marking the first anniversary of the country’s unification with the four Ukrainian regions of the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, and Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.

Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine will continue until the original Russian territories are free, Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel on Saturday.

The residents of the four territories took part in referendums a year ago and made the decision to be with their Fatherland, he said, adding, This choice became a symbol not only of the restoration of historical justice but also of the unity of the Russian people, their colossal will and dedication.

Medvedev, who now holds the position of deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, insisted that the campaign will be continued until the Kiev regime is destroyed and the original Russian territories are liberated from the enemy.

Russia will even add more new regions to its territory, Medvedev asserted. Victory will be ours. And there will be more new regions within Russia.

Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson signed agreements to join the Russian state at the Kremlin on September 30, 2022.

It followed referendums in the four regions held between September 23 and 27 last year. During the votes, the number of those who supported unification with Russia stood at 99.23 percent in Donetsk, 98.42 percent in Lugansk, 87 percent in Kherson, and 93.11 percent in Zaporizhzhia.

In a speech on Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the unification of the new territories was a conscious, long-awaited, hard-won, and genuinely popular decision ... made collectively through referendums in full compliance with international norms.

Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine in late February 2022, following Kiev’s failure to implement the terms of the 2014 Minsk agreements and Moscow’s recognition of the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Lugansk.

Putin said the goal of the operation was to de-Nazify Ukraine and stop NATO westward encroachment.

Prior to this, Crimea had declared independence from Ukraine on March 17, 2014, and formally applied to become part of Russia following a referendum, in which 96.8 percent of participants voted in favor of the move.

After Crimea’s reunification, the United States and its Western allies in the European Union slapped sanctions on Russia, initiating a downward trend in diplomatic relations with the Kremlin which has gotten worse till this day.