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KIEV/MOSKAU/ROM (dpa-AFX) – Great hopes are attached to the possibly imminent Ukrainian spring offensive in the country attacked by Russia. However, the Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov has now warned against too high expectations. “They are definitely inflated, everyone wants the next win,” said the 56-year-old in an interview with the RBK-Ukrajina news agency on Thursday. Reznikov recalled that initially it was only hoped that the country would somehow survive. “But when the Armed Forces of Ukraine showed successes, everyone began to believe in victory,” the minister said.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed confidence. The West has delivered 230 tanks and more than 1,550 armored vehicles for more than nine armored brigades to Ukraine in the past few months. They each consist of several thousand Ukrainian soldiers. “This puts Ukraine in a strong position to recapture occupied territory,” said Stoltenberg on the sidelines of a meeting with Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel in Brussels. His spokesman added that Ukraine has received “hundreds of tanks” and “thousands of other armored vehicles” since the war began.
At the same time, Stoltenberg warned against underestimating the capabilities of the Russian armed forces. They tried to compensate for lack of quality with quantity. “We see that Russia continues to mobilize more personnel,” he said. The fighting for the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut also showed that Russia was prepared to accept a high number of dead and injured.
Russia invaded Ukraine over 14 months ago. The Ukrainian troops succeeded in largely reversing initial Russian successes. However, Moscow still controls almost 20 percent of Ukraine’s territory, including the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed in 2014.
London: Russians layer sandbags to defend nuclear plant roof
The British Ministry of Defense reported in the daily intelligence update that the Russian occupying forces were apparently preparing for a battle over the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Satellite images show that defensive positions with sandbags were sometimes created on the roofs of the reactors. “Russia probably established these positions because of growing concern over the prospect of a major Ukrainian offensive,” the statement said. The move increases the risk of damage to the nuclear power plant’s security system should fighting take place there. However, catastrophic damage to the reactors is unlikely in most plausible infantry weapon scenarios because the building structures are very well armored.
Dead after Russian attacks – Zelenskyj denounces “terror”.
According to Ukrainian sources, at least six people were killed and more than 20 others injured in new Russian attacks. According to the authorities, four Kalibr rockets hit the southern city of Mykolayiv. One person died and 23 others were injured. It was the heaviest blow in four months, it said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of “terrorism”. In the Zaporizhia and Donetsk regions, the authorities said five people were killed and four others injured in Russian attacks the previous day. Russia is showing that the main goal of this war is “terror, the destruction of Ukrainians and everything Ukrainian,” Zelensky said. The rockets on Mykolaiv were fired from the Black Sea, aimed at private houses, a historic building and a high-rise building.
Moscow reacts cautiously to talks between Kiev and Beijing
After Zelenskyy’s first phone call with China’s party and head of state Xi Jinping, which received positive international reviews, Moscow expressed reservations. “We are ready to welcome anything that brings an end to the conflict and the achievement of all of Russia’s goals,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to the Russian state news agency TASS. For example, Russia is demanding that Ukraine refrain from joining NATO because the nuclear power sees its security threatened as a result.
Even after Xi’s visit to Moscow in March, the Russian leadership was open to Beijing’s efforts to negotiate a ceasefire and peace talks. After Zelenskyy’s phone call with Xi, the prominent Russian foreign politician Leonid Slutsky criticized the fact that Kiev continued to insist on its positions and rejected a ceasefire. Kiev demands the withdrawal of all Russian troops.
Schmyhal: Ukraine ready for EU accession negotiations by the end of the year
Ukraine wants to start negotiations on EU membership this year, Prime Minister Denis Schmyhal said in Rome. “Ukraine has implemented all seven recommendations from the European Commission that we received when it received candidate status,” said the politician, who was in Italy for his country’s reconstruction conference and also met Pope Francis at the Vatican on Thursday. Schmyhal asked Francis to work to ensure that children abducted by Russian authorities can return to their homeland. In addition, Schmyhal invited the Pope to Ukraine./haw/DP/nas