After its setback in northern Ukraine, where it failed to conquer kyiv, the Russian army now aims to “take control of southern Ukraine and secure a land corridor to Crimea”écrit The Guardian.
A senior Russian military official, Rustam Minnekayev, detailed the Kremlin’s plans on Friday, leaving no doubt that “Russia is considering the permanent occupation of the territories conquered during the war”observes the British daily.
These remarks “are in stark contrast to previous statements by Vladimir Putin that Russia was not aiming to permanently occupy Ukrainian cities, and suggest that the Kremlin is changing tactics after its failed offensive against Kyiv”continues The Guardian.
According to Minnekayev, speaking at a defense industry forum, the occupation of southern Ukraine “will provide a land corridor to Crimea [annexée illégalement par Moscou en 2014]and will affect a vital part of the Ukrainian economy: the Black Sea ports, through which agricultural and metallurgical exports pass” from the country.
Odessa in the Russian viewfinder
But if we are to believe the statements of the senior Russian official, the Kremlin does not intend to stop in Ukraine, but to push as far as the pro-Russian separatist region of Transnistria, in Moldova, under the pretext “to prevent an alleged persecution of the Russian-speaking population in the region” – an argument already used by the Kremlin to justify the invasion of Ukraine, notes The country.
The threat was taken seriously enough by Moldova to summon the Russian ambassador, to inform him of its “deep concern”. And it thrills Odessa, which Russia will have to conquer if it wants to establish a land corridor between Crimea and Transnistria.
“All of this raises the stakes of the Battle of Donbass, because it means that Russia does not just want to protect the breakaway regions of Luhansk and Donetsk”analyze the Wall Street Journal. “Russia also wants to attack Odessa, the Ukrainian Black Sea port. If the Russians capture Mariupol on the Sea of Azov, as they will likely do after its brutal siege, then Odessa will become Ukraine’s last major maritime connection to world trade.”.
“They’re not going to stop”
Pour Radio Free Europe-Radio LibertyMinnekayev’s comments constitute “the most detailed description to date of Russian objectives for the second phase of its invasion of Ukraine, and represents for kyiv the proof that the Kremlin was lying when it claimed not to have territorial ambitions”.
“They’re not going to stop”, warned the Ukrainian Minister of Defense on Twitter. Russia “recognizes that the objective of this ‘second phase’ of the war is not a victory over hypothetical Nazis, but simply the occupation of eastern and southern Ukraine. Pure and hard imperialism”he wrote.
But Moscow could well see its plans thwarted, says Vox. ‘Cause she’s going “to launch his army against the Ukrainian military elite”who is fighting in the Donbass “since 2014, when Russian-backed separatists rebelled against the Kyiv government and Moscow annexed Crimea”.
After eight years of war, “they have great experience in the field and know how Russian fighters operate”explains the site. “Knowing that Russia is using a lot of new recruits in this conflict, including poorly trained and ill-equipped conscripts, the Ukrainians’ advantage in terms of experience could prove decisive”.