At a press conference on Saturday, Putin answered a question about whether the West's support for Ukraine has gone too far:
"I think it (the war) is moving towards an end, but it is still a serious situation," Putin replied cryptically.
The move should be seen in the context of the fact that May 9 is an important day in Russia, marking the end of World War II in Europe and the Soviet Union's defeat of Nazi Germany, notes Huovinen, who followed the events in Moscow on Saturday.
This is also a type of diplomacy. Putin shows that he understands that Russia has suffered. But at the same time he demonstrates that Russia has won: Russia controls Crimea, large parts of Donbass, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, says Huovinen, who works at the Stockholm National Defense University.
Changed setting
He notes that Putin's statement about the end of the war in connection with Saturday's parade indicates a changed attitude.
If you look at those who marched, they weren't large military units - those are engaged at the front. So they were mothers and wives of fallen soldiers, they were wearing the uniform jackets of their husbands and sons. It was something new.
Russian successes at the front have been lacking, and Huovinen is waiting for reports on how the battle line has changed over the past month. In the last two months, Ukraine has recaptured territory. In addition, Ukraine has managed to carry the war far into Russia in the last six months, including through drone attacks.
There is a panicky Russian fear that Ukraine could reach so far into Russia, says Huovinen.
Freeze battle lines
A change in Moscow could be to resume contacts with the US, and consider "freezing" the current battle lines inside Ukraine, for the time being. And perhaps return in ten years.
But Putin showed no signs of initiating direct peace talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, notes Huovinen.
During his well-arranged meeting with journalists, Putin also repeated previous propagandistic claims that the war in Ukraine began after Kyiv's attempts to join multilateral organizations such as the EU and NATO, and that Western politicians provoked the war.
