Ukraine rejects a short ceasefire. This would only help Russia, says President Zelenskyy. Meanwhile, one of his generals is extremely optimistic about the course of the war. During his first visit to Kyiv, the British prime minister promised further help. Meanwhile, Russia has announced several maneuvers in the Baltic Sea. The 269th day of the war at a glance.
Kyiv: “No Russian offer for negotiations”
According to Ukrainian sources, Russia has not yet made an official offer to negotiate peace with Kyiv. “We have not received any official request from the Russian side,” said Ukrainian presidential adviser Andriy Yermak during a video link at the International Security Forum in Halifax, Canada. Before negotiations could begin, Moscow would have to “withdraw all Russian troops from Ukrainian territory,” he added. Presidential Chief Andriy Yermak told Telegram: “There will be peace if we destroy the Russian army in Ukraine and reach the 1991 borders.”
Zelenskyj rejects “short ceasefire”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed the idea of ??a “short-term ceasefire” with Russia, arguing that it would only make matters worse. “Russia now wants a short ceasefire, a respite to regain strength,” said the president in a speech broadcast at the International Security Forum. Such a respite would not end the war but only make things worse, he said. “A (…) genuine, lasting and honest peace can only come about through the complete destruction of Russian aggression,” he said. The White House had previously reaffirmed that only the Ukrainian head of state could decide whether to open negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, thereby rejecting the suspicion that the US was putting pressure on Kyiv in this regard.
Ukrainian general: War could end by summer
The Ukrainian deputy defense minister is optimistic that by the end of December their own troops could be in Crimea and that the war in their own country could end by the middle of next year. “My feeling is that this war will be over by the end of spring,” General Volodymyr Havrylov told Sky News. He does not think it impossible that the Ukrainian military will advance to Crimea by the end of the year. Russia annexed the peninsula in 2014. From a military point of view, the war could drag on for a while, Havrylov admitted. The Ukrainian army still needs some time to reach its full potential.
Kyiv: Russia increases troops in Luhansk region
According to the Ukrainian General Staff, the Russian armed forces are increasing their troop presence in the Luhansk region. In order to accommodate the many soldiers, part of the civilian population will be forcibly resettled, the general staff said. The people would be housed in other places, it said. The eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk borders with Russia.
Sunak promises further help when visiting Kyiv
Great Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak visited Kyiv. In view of the massive rocket fire from Russia, London wants to give Ukraine more support in defending against the attacks from the air. Sunak promised further aid equivalent to almost 57.5 million euros, which includes dozens of anti-aircraft guns and is intended to help protect the population and infrastructure. “We’re with you all the way,” he said. In addition, the British want to strengthen their training offer for the Ukrainian armed forces and send army medics and engineers to support them. Sunak was received by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj in a light snowfall.
Heaviest fighting in the east
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported repelling all Ukrainian attack attempts in the Luhansk region and its own attacks in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine to the south. The fighting in the Donetsk region in particular has recently increased significantly in intensity. A Ukrainian soldier reported on social networks about the heaviest fighting since he was transferred to the front near the small town of Bakhmut. Bakhmut is part of the Ukrainian defenses east of the conurbation between Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. For months, mercenaries from the so-called Wagner Group have been trying to storm the small town, and more recently, more Russian units have been deployed to the region.
Poland buries victims of rocket attack
In the small eastern Polish village of Przewodow, six kilometers from the Ukrainian border, a 62-year-old camp manager has been buried – accompanied by military honors. The man died on Tuesday when a rocket hit him. Images from Polish television showed large funeral wreaths with ribbons in the colors of the Polish and Ukrainian flags. The state funeral for the second victim is scheduled for Sunday. The West currently assumes that it was a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile, used to defend against attacks by the Russian military, that eventually hit Polish territory. Zelenskyj continues to assume that a Russian missile hit Poland. However, he qualifies that he does not know with absolute certainty what happened.
Russia’s Baltic Sea fleet wants to start major maneuvers in winter
The Russian Baltic Fleet is preparing numerous major military exercises. “During the winter training period, several dozen large-scale maneuvers at various levels are planned at the Baltic Fleet training grounds – involving tank and motorized rifle units, anti-aircraft, radio, artillery and reconnaissance squads, as well as the fleet’s air force,” the press service said According to the Interfax news agency, the Baltic Fleet. The Baltic Fleet is based in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. The training year begins in the armed forces on December 1st. Since 2016, the Baltic Fleet has also included a larger army unit with the formation of the 11th Army Corps. Only recently it became known that this corps had been reinforced with an additional motorized rifle division.
Majority of APEC condemns Russian attack
In Bangkok, meanwhile, the member states of the Asia-Pacific Economic Community (APEC) “majority” condemned the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. In a joint statement at the end of the APEC summit on Saturday, most of the 21 members “strongly criticized” the war and its negative effects on the global economy. However, there were also “other views and different assessments,” it said. APEC members also include Russia and China, which has so far refrained from openly criticizing Russia because of the Ukraine war.
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