President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that the statement made by Russia about the allegedly deliberate slowdown in the advance of Russian troops in Ukraine is a lie.

"Today, another absolutely inadequate statement was made from Russia that they deliberately slow down offensive actions. Well, after three months of searching for explanations why they failed to break Ukraine in three days, they did not come up with anything better than to say that it was planned so," Zelensky said in a video message on Tuesday evening," Zelensky said in an evening video message on Tuesday.

He said that almost 30,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine today, more than 200 aircraft have been shot down, thousands of Russian tanks, armored vehicles and their other equipment have been destroyed, and almost entire Russian missile ammunition has been almost completely spent.

"And they want to cover this up with a lie, that they are fighting not at full strength. It's a pity. And the time will come when they will admit it themselves," the president said.

As reported, on the morning of May 24, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu called the slowdown in offensive operations in Ukraine "deliberate." According to him, Russian troops allegedly create "humanitarian corridors for the evacuation of civilians" from cities and villages surrounded by Russia in the south and east of Ukraine, and also allegedly "declare a regime of silence."