Shaaban Bilal, agencies (capitals)
Russian forces announced increasing gains in eastern Ukraine near Voglidar yesterday, to add more to their biggest gains in months. Kyiv, in turn, denied Moscow’s announcement, while NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on South Korea to intensify its military assistance to Ukraine.
And Russian news agencies had quoted the leader of the pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, as saying, “Our units continue to advance. Units have been set up in eastern Vogledar and work is continuing in the vicinity.”
Although the Ukrainian army spokesman announced the failure of the Russian attacks, stressing that the Ukrainian forces were able to repel the Russians thanks to “firearms and artillery”, the Ukrainian president acknowledged the difficult situation in the eastern Donetsk region, calling for more supplies to resist the Russian attacks.
For his part, Pushilin confirmed that the Ukrainian army has retreated to an area that includes “a large number of industrial sites and tall buildings” that facilitate defense operations, explaining that “fierce battles” are taking place near Bakhmut, and that it is too early to talk about encircling the city by Russian forces.
In the context, Jens Stoltenberg called on South Korea, yesterday, to intensify its military aid to Ukraine.
“If we believe in freedom and democracy, the Ukrainians need weapons,” Stoltenberg said, calling on Seul to do more for Kyiv. Political experts and analysts emphasized the continuation of the conflict in light of the fact that no party has given up its position and the Western and American support for Ukraine, noting that the chances of a political settlement and peace between Russia and Ukraine during the current period are very difficult. According to Andrei Murtazin, a researcher on Russian affairs, the so-called peace formula announced by the Ukrainian president means nothing more than a warning to Russia to withdraw completely from the territories seized during the crisis, and that Russia will not withdraw from the areas it controlled such as Kherson, Zaporizhia, Donetsk, and Lugansk. Mutazin explained, in statements to Al-Ittihad, that the Western goal is to drain and deter Russia. Therefore, the escalation between the two parties will continue, and the Russian forces will attack in the near future, and there will be no political settlement under the current circumstances.
Over the past few days, Washington and Berlin agreed to send the American Abrams tanks and the German Leopard to Ukraine to counter the Russian attack, in a move that the Ukrainian presidency considered a decisive role in their victory over the Russian forces, but Moscow considered this a dangerous provocation.
The researcher specializing in political affairs, Hassan Hashem, agrees that the chances of peace are elusive due to the successive Western military supplies to Ukraine, an indication that the West has no intention of heading towards a solution. Hashem explained, in statements to Al-Ittihad, that the Ukrainian side is counting on an improvement in the weather and fighting conditions, and this encourages its formations as a helping factor for them not to surrender during the coming period.
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