Ukraine: According to a senior Russian diplomat, a proposal appears impossible as Russia does not see a diplomatic solution to the Ukrainian conflict and fears a protracted fight. Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva Gennady Gatilov told the Financial Times that he saw no prospect of diplomatic contacts between the two countries and warned that the longer the war lasted, the more difficult it would be to find a diplomatic solution.
According to him, a "political" UN has been ineffective as a mediator. Russian officials were also looking into a possible car bomb attack outside Moscow that killed the daughter of Alexander Dugin, an ultranationalist Russian ideologue who advocates for Russia to absorb Ukraine.
invincible war
A 40-year-old combat doctor nicknamed "Doc" is preparing to mark the six-month anniversary of Russia's invasion of a trench in the front line south of the Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv.
"You need to be prepared for the fact that this can go on for a long time," said the doctor, his boob brows peeking out from under his camouflage helmet. "There's a lot of tears and a lot of blood." "You cry in your heart," said the doctor, a civilian dental technician.
The history of generations is being erased." His companions gulp down hot bowls of hearty soup in an underground bunker compound surrounded by rusty tank nets and surrounded by stray cats and dogs.
At the head of the table a man wears a hand tattoo that says "Never give up" in cursive script.
The six-month war is not only a great loss for the country, but it is also a small loss for every individual," said 41-year-old soldier Mykola, who was sitting on the left. "We have informed our troops that the conflict could go on for years," said the battalion's deputy commander Artem. Russia began its offensive on 24 February, attempting to seize Kyiv in a lightning strike. Kyiv's army resisted valiantly, forcing Russia to retreat before the conflict shifted to the eastern Donbass region.
In recent weeks the focus has shifted to southern Ukraine, where Ukrainian forces say they are preparing a retaliatory strike. When asked about his hopes for the future during a visit to Odessa, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres closed his eyes, spoke softly, and described a "very difficult situation where the prospects for peace are unclear." " "Finding a way to peace in the short term will not be easy," Guterres said. "But we must persevere because world peace is the most important good."
The United Nations and Turkey have mediated a historic grain deal in which Russia is lifting a blockade on Ukraine's southern Black Sea ports, allowing grain shipments to pass through and easing the global food price crisis. Much of Ukraine's east and south is under Russian control, depriving the country of important Black Sea ports for grain exports, which are the lifeblood of its economy. However, Guterres' visit on Friday was overshadowed by concerns about the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, which is occupied by Russian troops and under rocket fire elsewhere in Ukraine's south.
World powers call for reining in nuclear plant
On Sunday, the leaders of Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States urged the warring sides to exercise restraint around Ukraine's troubled Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant and to give UN inspectors immediate access to the vast site. Russia seized the Zaporizhzhya plant in the southern Ukrainian city of Enerhodar in early March. Fighting on the campus has intensified in recent weeks, prompting world powers to issue dire warnings of a potentially catastrophic escalation. In a phone call on Sunday, US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson discussed Zaporizhzhya and the wider Ukrainian conflict.
According to a White House statement, they agreed to "need to avoid military operations near the plant" and for nuclear experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect the facility to help ensure its safety and security. Happened. With six reactors, Europe's largest nuclear power plant is strategically important to Ukraine's electricity supply. Cold weather will also test Ukrainians' resolve if they face fuel shortages, power or heating outages, and other difficulties, especially if fighting forces more people out of their homes.
According to Marie Dumoulin, director of the European Council on Foreign Relations, 40% of schools in Ukraine will remain closed when classes resume in September, which could have a significant psychological impact. If the conflict descends into a quagmire in winter and into 2023, much will depend on whether West's support can be sustained, especially if voters believe the costs, including rising fuel and food prices , is becoming prohibitively expensive.
"Perhaps there will come a point when Putin will rely on Western indifference to inspire Western leaders to pressure Ukraine to end the conflict on Russia's terms," Dumoulin said.
Unless a catastrophic military miscalculation occurs, Ukraine's military is unlikely to collapse completely, and some expect Zelensky to accept any talks that would result in Ukraine taking back all lost territories, including Crimea. does not take
Russia's military advantage could gradually diminish if its allies continue to provide aid and weapons.
It could also jeopardize Putin's domestic popularity, potentially spurring opposition forces ahead of the March 2024 presidential elections.
"Declaration of war, martial law, or general mobilization could escalate tensions between the Kremlin and the remnants of civil society," Minik said.
"It will be more difficult to manage in big cities like Moscow or St. Petersburg, where the obsessive anti-Western narrative has less sway."
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