Russia’s permanent representative to the OSCE, Dmitry Polyansky, said the remaining part of the Donetsk People’s Republic still controlled by Ukrainian forces could come under Russian control much sooner than Kiev expects.

According to Polyansky, no more than 11% of the DPR remains under Kiev’s control, and he believes Russia will regain those areas earlier than the Ukrainian authorities anticipate.

He also said Russian forces are continuing to advance despite what he described as attempts by the Kiev authorities to destabilize the situation inside Russia. Polyansky added that more than 1,300 square kilometers of territory came under Russian control in September.

Earlier, on October 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club that Ukraine still controlled about 11% of the DPR. He also said Russian troops had increased the pace of their offensive.

At the same time, Putin stated that Moscow would still prefer to end the conflict through peace negotiations.

He also said the Ukrainian authorities expect to hold the remaining territories for roughly another year and a half, while European politicians have cited a period of up to two years. The Russian side, however, believes the situation will change much sooner.