The Russian military will do everything in its power to achieve success in Ukraine by May 9th. This assessment comes from a confidential NATO paper.
Moscow – Almost two months after the start of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, the situation in the contested areas remains unclear. In the past few weeks, however, a comprehensive movement of troops by the Russian military has been observed. The armed forces withdrew from the area around the capital Kyiv to regroup in eastern Ukraine. According to reports from the Ukrainian government, the expected major offensive by Russian troops from the east has now started.
Ukraine war: Confidential NATO report – Russia will “use disproportionate force”
The new supreme commander of the Russian troops in Ukraine, Alexander Dvornikov, is responsible for this new strategy. The general, who is also known as the “butcher of Syria” due to his unscrupulous actions in past conflicts, is said to enjoy the complete confidence of President Vladimir Putin to finally achieve long-awaited successes for Russia in the Ukraine war. The strategy is to achieve demonstrable military successes in eastern Ukraine by May 9th.
This emerges from a confidential paper from the NATO headquarters, which the portal Business Insider present. The Western states therefore expect that Dvornikov “most likely to use disproportionate force” to achieve military success in the contested areas. “He expects to implement these (goals) quickly and decisively with all the means at his disposal to deliver the victory demanded by President Putin in time for his Victory Day speech on May 9,” the document said.
Putin needs success by May 9 – military is under “huge political pressure”
In the past few weeks, various observers have repeatedly cited May 9 as the deadline by which Putin needs to report significant successes in Ukraine. On the date known as Victory Day, Russia celebrates the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. Every year, magnificent military parades and a tribute to Russian veterans take place there in Moscow. Putin also justified the war of aggression against Ukraine with the alleged fight against National Socialist forces in the country. A reported success on May 9 would therefore also have a symbolic effect.
“The Russian military leadership is under enormous political pressure to finally achieve a military breakthrough in Ukraine that can be presented as a victory at the May 9 parade,” the NATO paper said. Above all, the failed conquest of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv by Russian troops at the beginning of the war caused resentment in the Kremlin. President Putin is also said to have carried out a mass purge of Russian intelligence in response to the casualties. Added to this is the loss of the flagship Moskva last week, which further increased the pressure on the Russian military.
Major offensive in Donbas underway: Russia wants to “force” surrender of Ukraine
According to the NATO paper, Russia’s strategy is now to “use disproportionate force” “to prevent the westernization of Ukraine” and “to force a capitulation”. In the eyes of President Putin, Dvornikov is the right man to achieve the Kremlin’s goals. The Russian ruler has a “high level of confidence” in the general’s abilities. Dwornikow is a “workaholic” with high demands on himself, as the NATO paper further shows.
By May 9, the Russian troops want to get large parts of eastern Ukraine under their control. Complete control of the Donbas with the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts is a declared goal of the Russian troops, as is the city of Mariupol on the Azov Sea, which has been hard fought for weeks and in which Ukrainian troops are currently still entrenched. With the fall of Mariupol, Russian troops could control the land route to the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which Russia annexed back in 2014. You can read the latest news on how Germany is reacting to the Ukraine war in our news ticker. (fd)
#NATO #secret #paper #Putin #Ukraine #victory #9th