US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken does not excludeHe spoke of such an opinion that the counteroffensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces could begin in the coming weeks – in an interview with a German media group on Friday, April 7th. funke.
He was specifically asked whether the US supported Ukraine’s intention to “recapture all its territory by force”. “This is a solution for Ukraine. This is democracy, President Zelensky is responsible for the will of the Ukrainian people. Actually, this decision is up to the Ukrainians.
Together with many other countries, we support Ukraine’s efforts to preserve its territorial integrity, security, sovereignty and independence. Dozens of countries united for this, we saw it again at the NATO meeting on April 5th.
It is not yet clear how this will play out in the coming weeks, months and beyond. But basically this is a Ukrainian decision,” he said.
Blinken was also asked whether Russia should withdraw completely from Ukrainian territory. “In fact, Ukraine has already managed to thwart Putin’s original plan, which was to wipe it off the face of the earth, destroy its identity as an independent country, and lure it into Russia.
This project failed, and Ukraine showed that Putin did not and will not succeed. Now, exactly where all this will lead us remains to be determined, but the main goal with which Putin started this war has already failed. “And that’s not going to change,” said the US Secretary of State.
According to him, “Many friends and partners of Ukraine around the world, including the United States, have two goals.” “The first is to do everything possible to help Ukraine retake the territory captured by Russia, including a counterattack expected in the coming weeks.
But the second goal is to help Ukraine develop its medium and long-term capabilities to deter any attack and defend itself in case of a new attack.
Naturally, significant efforts will be required to help Ukraine recover from the devastation caused by Russia. Finally, until the Russian Federation changes course, we must continue the unprecedented pressure exerted by many countries on Russia through sanctions and export controls,” he said.
“Permanent peace, not ceasefire”
According to him, Russia has not yet shown its readiness for serious negotiations to establish a just and lasting peace.
“Some may be tempted by the truce, I understand that. But if the ceasefire leads to freezing conflictThis will not be a just and lasting peace if interpreted as affirming the Russian Federation’s right over certain parts of Ukraine and allowing Russia to reorganize, rest and attack again when appropriate.
141 countries at the UN spoke in favor of a just world; which means it must respect the fundamental principles underlying the UN Charter, including its territorial integrity, violated by Russia.
It should also be resilient, because there shouldn’t be a break that would allow Russia to one day start again,” he said.
Nuclear weapons in Belarus
Commenting on the Russian Federation’s plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on Belarusian territory, Blinken stressed that “this rhetoric is once again completely irresponsible.”
“The only country that talks about nuclear weapons or threatens to use them, directly or indirectly, and this is Russia itself, in the midst of aggression against Ukraine.
This is completely against the promises and commitments made to start a nuclear war that no one can ever win.”
“NATO will always take all measures it deems appropriate to protect the lands and lives of its member states,” he said.
According to him, all NATO members are extremely serious about the alliance’s goal of “protecting against aggression, not aggression”. “This includes Article 5 of the Statutes and each member’s obligations to the other.
But I don’t want to say more. I can say that we are following very closely what Russia is doing. “We see no reason to adapt our defensive stance to what Russia has done so far,” Blinken said.
How did Moscow react?
Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, said that the Russian army took into account all the information, including the statements of Blinken, when planning the NMD.
In response, the head of the “We are with Russia” movement, Vladimir Rogov, previously suggested that the expected counterattack of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Zaporozhye region would be “not only from land, but also from water”. He argues that the recent visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the part of the region controlled by Kiev “indirectly confirms the preparation of the Ukrainian army for an attack.”
According to Rogov, the Azov offensive plan of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is supervised by Western countries, allegedly developed by the British and US military. TASS.
On February 21, 2022, Russia recognized the independence of the DNR and LNR. On the morning of February 24, Russian President Putin announced that the war had begun. special military operation. He stated that DPR and LPR needed protection. Another goal of the special operations, Putin called “the disarmament and demilitarization” of Ukraine. He also stressed that the invasion of Ukrainian territory is not planned.
Source: Gazeta
Emma Matthew is a political analyst for “Social Bites”. With a keen understanding of the inner workings of government and a passion for politics, she provides insightful and informative coverage of the latest political developments.