Hostilities and bombing without end, with thousands of civilians dead and millions of refugees, economic warfare to the point of wiping out economies and countries, a lasting food crisis, alarm and concern even about the use of nuclear weapons. This is the bleak picture and even bleaker predictions four weeks after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and while no hope is expressed for any peace solution any time soon.
It was 24 February when Vladimir Putin opened the gates of hell. And while the Kremlin expected, and most observers estimated, that the military invasion of Ukraine, unthinkable for Western societies, would mean an "express war" of a few days, a month later it continues, spreading death and ashes, and causing a global paranoia, with frightening problems beyond the changes in the geopolitical balance.
NATO is holding its summit today in the presence of US President Joe Biden amid heightened anxiety following Russia's threat to use nuclear weapons, while seeking ways to assist Ukraine's defence, prompting a strong reaction from Moscow, which, through Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, warned that "sending a Western peacekeeping force to Ukraine could mean a NATO-Russia war."
At the same time, Russian forces seem unable to keep the siege of Kiev tight, while also retreating somewhat in Kharkiv, but this does not necessarily mean giving up on these two fronts, as overnight they bombed a bridge in the town of Chernihiv to the Russian capital. Overnight, in a new address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for global protests against the Russian invasion, and again called for more drastic support from NATO and the European Union.
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Estimates of redeployment of Russian operations
Although the siege of Mariupol continues and Moscow's interest is shifting, according to Lavrov's statements, on cutting off arms shipments from the West to Ukraine, the U.S. Department of Defense believes that the Russian military is mainly focusing on securing the eastern regions of the country, with an emphasis on Lugansk and Daniyetsk.
A US Pentagon official stated anonymously overnight that Russian forces have retreated, after stiff Ukrainian resistance, to 30 kilometers east of Kiev from the 15- and 20-kilometer zone 24 hours ago.
The same official gave the impression that west of Kiev the Russian army is also immobilized at a distance of 10 kilometers from the capital, with no other advance possible. But in Kharkiv, the Russians remain unable to take the city, although fierce fighting continues.
According to Pentagon estimates, Russian forces are "retreating and setting up defensive positions. It is not that they are not advancing, it is that they are not trying to advance, they are taking defensive positions."
The risk of NATO involvement
The big focus today is on the NATO summit in Brussels. On the table is the discussion of the possibility of escalating the war and using nuclear, or chemical weapons. On the latter, Joe Biden openly expressed his concern as he left Washington yesterday. For the Americans, the Russian military and the Kremlin have committed war crimes in Ukraine and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken spoke directly of criminal prosecutions.
Alliance officials said before the summit that NATO was in "absolute peril" because of Putin's war in Ukraine, while North Atlantic Treaty Organisation secretary Jens Stoltenberg spoke of strengthening its forces in the eastern wing.
Stoltenberg called on Moscow to stop "nuclear lionizing" and described Russian officials' statements about using such weapons as "dangerous and irresponsible." He also added that the Allies are determined to support Ukraine, while clarifying that NATO has a "responsibility" to ensure that the war does not escalate beyond that country. "Any use of chemical weapons would completely change the nature of the conflict, would be a flagrant violation of international law and would have far-reaching consequences," Stoltenberg asserted."
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also urged Putin not to use chemical or biological weapons during talks on Wednesday.
Earlier and in response to a Polish proposal, Sergei Lavrov had warned that sending a Western peacekeeping force to Ukraine could mean a NATO-Russia war. "I hope they understand what they are saying," the Russian diplomatic chief said. "This will be the direct clash between Russia's armed forces and NATO that everyone not only tried to avoid, but said should not take place in the first place."
However, Kiev expects support from the West on four fronts, according to Zelensky's close adviser, Mikhailo Podolyak: Better air defense assets, missiles, an embargo on Russian oil and closing ports to Russian ships around the world. Late at night it became known that Britain is sending another 6,000 anti-tank missiles, while 5,000 such weapons were announced to be sent to Kiev by Sweden.
Source: protothema.gr
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