Russian President Vladimir Putin asked the Ukrainian army to oust the nation's leadership who according to him are "terrorists" and "a gang of drug addicts and neo-Nazis", reports ndtv.com.

In a televised speech, he asked them to "take power in your own hands."

"It seems like it will be easier for us to agree with you than this gang of drug addicts and neo-Nazis," he saidin reference to President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish.

Meanwhile, Ukraine wants peace and is ready for talks with Russia, including on neutral status regarding NATO, Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters on Friday amid reports that over 1000 Russian soldiers have been killed.

"If talks are possible, they should be held. If in Moscow they say they want to hold talks, including on neutral status, we are not afraid of this," he said via a text message. "We can talk about that as well."

"Our readiness for dialogue is part of our persistent pursuit of peace."

Ukraine currently is not part of NATO or the European Union, though it wants to join both, anathema to its former overlord Moscow.

Ukraine gave up its nuclear arms, after gaining independence on the breakup of the Soviet Union, in exchange for security guarantees from European countries.

After pro-democracy protests toppled a Russia-allied Ukrainian president in 2014, Moscow annexed the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea from Kyiv and went on to back rebels fighting government troops in the east of the country.