Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is not interested in a ceasefire. In a special interview he gave yesterday (Friday) to the “Wall Street Journal” newspaper, Zelensky warned against stopping the war now, saying that it would only play into the hands of Vladimir Putin and Russia. According to him, only the full return of the territories that Russia conquered could help end the war. “Stopping the conflict now, without returning the territories, will only strengthen Russia and lay the ground for another round of fighting.”
Zelensky is sure that stopping the war now, something that many world leaders really want to happen, against the background of the large price increases, will only allow Russia and its army to prepare for the next round. “They will be able to rest, prepare their army again, and then – within two or three years – they will conquer a few more districts and say again to stop and reach agreements.”
The president of Ukraine made it clear that the military aid given to him by the Western countries, such as the advanced batteries that entered the battlefield only in the last few weeks, helps him significantly in the fight against the Russians. “The Western arms shipments are already starting to affect what is happening in the Donbass campaign,” he said in an interview. “Ukrainian casualties have dropped to about 30 daily, after a long period of between 100 and 200 each day. Until recently, Ukraine was only able to fire between 1,000 and 2,000 shells per day compared to 12,000 Russian rounds, but now we are able to fire more than – 6,000 shells a day, and on the other hand, Russia is experiencing a great lack of ammunition.”
British intelligence reported today that the last 48 hours have been accompanied by particularly intense battles in the Kherson area, and the Russians are struggling to maintain control of the area through heavy artillery fire. Despite this, the Russians’ supply lines to the region are now in real danger, and damage to them could be an extremely severe strategic blow to Putin’s army, which is struggling to maintain its grip on the region.
In recent days, estimates have increased in the West regarding the possibility of annexing the southern regions to Russia. It is believed that the Russians intend to annex them as quickly as possible, before the Ukrainian counterattack.