Russia is again pressuring the West to encourage Ukraine to open talks, according to US-based analysts, warning that Moscow is in fact trying to force Kiev into concessions.
“It is likely that the Kremlin has renewed its information campaign to get the West to force Ukraine to accept concessions and negotiate terms favorable to Russia,” according to an analysis by the Institute for Military Studies. (KSI) based in Washington.
U.S. analysts said Friday’s Kremlin statements showed Russian President Vladimir Putin is open to dialogue, but they said Moscow was still trying to demotivate the West from providing aid to Ukraine, and that its willingness to negotiate was feigned.
“V “Putin’s statement does not indicate that Russia is interested in negotiations with Ukraine, the Kremlin has not created any serious basis for negotiations and has not given up its maximum goals to force the government Ukrainian to capitulate,” the report said.
Russia accuses Ukraine and the West of blocking the talks and simultaneously rejects Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s peace plan, which calls for the withdrawal of Russian troops.
The Kremlin is likely to reinforce its false claims that it is ready for negotiations, according to the KSI report. At the same time, China, through its special envoy Li Hui, is also trying to pressure the West to use its influence over Ukraine and secure a ceasefire.
The European Union and the United States continue to stress their continued support for Ukraine, which has been attacked by Russia for more than 15 months. kyiv relies on heavy weapons and ammunition from the West to liberate the occupied territories.
Zelensky released a video from Kiev on Saturday evening, thanking its allies Germany, Finland, Canada and Iceland for new arms deliveries and announcing tougher sanctions on Russia to end its war against Ukraine.
“Today is another day of sanctions,” the president said. It listed 220 companies and 51 individuals “working for terrorism”.
The latest British briefing said separatist forces from the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, loyal to Moscow, may have entered the Ukrainian town of Bakhmut on Wednesday and launched a mopping-up operation.
“In recent weeks, elements of the 31st Brigade of the Russian Airborne Forces have probably left the Svatov region and the Kremina district to reinforce the flanks near Bakhmut,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that on May 16. Ukrainian forces had occupied 20 square kilometers around Bakhmut.
Earlier, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Army, Valery Zaluzhn, released a video showing Ukrainian soldiers praying and preparing for a major offensive. “It’s time to take back what’s ours,” the video reads.
Source: The Delfi
