【2023. 2. 17 Ukraine】
‘Ukraine will never compromise’: Zelensky’s war on one-year anniversary BBC interview
“Compromising, ceding to Putin will only weaken our country,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accepts as Russian invasion approaches one year《BBC》In an exclusive interview, he reiterated that he will never give up any Ukrainian territory. Zelensky pointed out that ceding the territory will only make Russia “keep returning” to the threat of war once more. Zelensky continued to call on the West to provide more arms assistance, pointing out that “force is the only language Russia understands”-Russia has lost regarding 40% of its tanks in the war, and Ukraine has recently received promises from Western countries Main battle tanks, but the tanks have not yet been fully positioned; and all parts of Ukraine were bombed by Russian missiles once more on February 16, and the Udong stronghold Bakhmut (Bakhmut) is still under siege by Wagner mercenaries.
In an interview report published by the “BBC” on February 16, Zelensky emphasized that he ruled out any possibility of ceding territory to Russia. He warned that if Ukraine agreed to use territory as a price in possible peace negotiations, it would only make Russia Russia knows the taste, and keeps returning to the Ukrainian land to start conflicts. On the contrary, the weapons aided by the West to Ukraine are the way to bring peace closer and return to this land.
As the first anniversary of the Russo-Ukrainian war approaches, Zelensky pointed out that a new wave of spring offensives has begun, and Russia has resumed attacks on Ukraine from all directions, but he emphasized that Ukraine can continue to resist and counterattack – but Ukraine still needs the West Arms support from various countries, Zelensky said:
“Modern weapons have accelerated the arrival of peace, and force is the only language Russia understands.”
Previously, Zelensky met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on February 2, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron on February 8. ) and German Chancellor Schulz (Olaf Scholz) and other Western leaders; except that the European Union has implemented a Russian oil price ceiling and will launch the 10th round of sanctions once morest Russia on February 24, the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ze Lensky also continued to request weapons support, including requests from Western countries to provide fighter planes and other heavy weapons. As for Ukraine’s request to provide fighter jets, Sunak did not refuse, responding: “Nothing is impossible.”
However, the new tank aid is still in line with the previous commitments by Western countries to give Ukraine main battle tanks in late January, including Germany’s promise to provide Leopard 2 tanks (Leopard 2) and the United States saying it will deliver M1 Abrams tanks (M1 Abrams). The Ukrainian team, which is still deeply involved in the war, is in a hurry. In addition, it still takes time to train the Ukrainian army to drive and operate Western tanks.
In addition to the amount and speed of arms aid, Ukraine’s other concern comes from Belarus; Belarus, which is adjacent to the north of Ukraine, was a rare ally of Russia in the Ukrainian-Russian War. Alexander Lukashenko himself is a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Between the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, when the Russian army assembled on the Ukrainian border, Belarus announced a joint military exercise with Russia to allow the Russian army to gather in its territory and launch an invasion.Lukashenko accepted on February 16《BBC》When interviewed by foreign media, he said that if any Ukrainian soldier crossed the border and killed Belarusian citizens, the Belarusian army would be launched to fight side by side with the Russian army and attack Ukraine together.
Regarding the potential threat from Belarus, Zelensky said:
“I hope Belarus will not join the war, but if it does, we will fight, we will win and we will survive.”
At the same time, Zelensky pointed out that it would be a “huge mistake” for Belarus to allow Russia to launch attacks once more.
Ukraine is still resisting aggression and launching a counter-offensive. According to the data released by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, 824 Russian troops will be killed every day in February 2023. The death rate data is the highest since the first week of the war between Ukraine and Russia – British Ministry of Defensepointed outalthough it is impossible to verify the exact number, but judging from the trend of the war, the accuracy of this data in Uzbekistan should be very high.
In addition, according to the British think tankInternational Institute for Strategic StudiesAccording to the statistics of (IISS), the Russian army has lost at least 40% of its tanks in Ukraine; if the main battle tanks used by the forward troops are used to estimate, the loss rate has risen to 50%. IISS Chairman John Chipman pointed out that The Ukrainian-Russian war was “a political and military failure for Russia, highlighting flaws in leadership and insufficient ammunition and armaments.”
But Ukraine was also devastated. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense pointed out that on February 16, Russia once once more launched artillery attacks across Ukraine, including the largest Kremenchuk oil refinery (Kremenchuk) in its territory. Of the 36 missiles launched by the Russian army, the Ukrainian army shot down 16 of them, but the Russian army also included 3 KH-31 missiles and 1 Oniks anti-ship cruise missile, which Ukraine’s existing air defense system might not shoot down.
Archyde.comAccording to reports, Russia’s current key attack target is the town of Bakhmut in Uzbekistan, which is located in Donetsk. After Ukraine successfully counterattacked and regained Kharkov and Kherson, Bakhmut became a key target in the Russian-Ukrainian war. The only frontline battlefield that remains on the offensive, the Russian troops withdrawn from Kherson in January 2023 were transferred to Bakhmut.
At present, the mercenary organization Wagner is still besieging Bakhmut. If Bakhmut is captured, this place can be used as the Russian army to advance and occupy two larger cities in the Donetsk region-Kramatorsk (Kramatorsk) and Slovyansk ( Sloviansk – stronghold, Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed to capture Bakhmut by April.
The war is still stalemate, peace has not yet returned, and Zelensky emphasized the unity of Ukraine at the end of the “BBC” interview. He said:
“Today, our survival depends on our unity, and I believe Ukraine is fighting to survive.”
At the same time, Zelensky stated that Ukraine is moving towards Europe in terms of values and economy, and reiterated its refusal to compromise with Russia. He emphasized:
