Speaking on the 8-month anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that his country is “crushing the so-called second army of the world.” RELATED: Putin declares martial law in annexed regions of Ukraine https://bit.ly/3f3CUJl While warning the upcoming winter “will be the most difficult in history,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed the country's successes as the war against invading Russia reached the eight-month mark Monday. Russian forces have destroyed 30% of Ukraine's energy infrastructure in a series of targeted attacks in recent weeks, Zelenskyy has said, prompting him to call for conservation efforts. But he also pointed out Monday his military's progress in reclaiming territory in the partially occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv and Kherson provinces, and said the plan is to retake the Zaporizhzhia region and the annexed Crimean peninsula. “Ukraine is breaking the so-called second army of the world,” Zelenskyy said. “Now Russia can only be a beggar. It is begging for something in Iran, trying to squeeze something out of Western states, inventing various tales about Ukraine, intimidating, deceiving.” » Subscribe to USA TODAY: http://bit.ly/1xa3XAh » Watch more on this and other topics from USA TODAY: https://bit.ly/3QYKjbc » USA TODAY delivers current local and national news, sports, entertainment, finance, technology, and more through award-winning journalism, photos, videos and VR. #Ukraine #Russia #Zelenskyy