A year into the Russian-Ukrainian war, the sound of shelling continues, with no immediate solutions on the horizon. With the expansion of the battlefield and the readiness of several countries for a new war, the Polish Ministry of Defense announced the erection of barriers and anti-tank barricades on the roads with Russia and Belarus.
According to experts who spoke to Sky News Arabia, the second year of the war will witness a significant expansion of the battlefield, with the entry of other international parties into the crisis.
Here, the Polish politician and media figure Kamil Gil Katie says that the speech of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the first anniversary of the start of his military move confirmed in threatening language that there are other targets in the war, in an explicit reference to Russia’s neighboring countries and Europe.
And Camille Gil Catty adds that following Putin’s speech in the Russian Parliament, he spoke at a military conference hours later regarding recovering the lands of ancient Russia, and this is “another escalation and evidence that the third war is inevitably coming as a result of Russian encroachment,” as he described it.
Europe is preparing for the bad
On the eve of the first anniversary of the war, the Polish Minister of Defense, Mariusz Blaszczak, announced that the Polish army had installed anti-tank barriers and barriers on the roads and borders with Russia and Belarus.
He wrote on Twitter: “We have started a preventive reinforcement of security on the borders with Russia and Belarus. This is part of our defense and deterrence strategy. The first fortifications have already been deployed on the borders with the Kaliningrad region.”
In Ukraine itself, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez arrived in Kiev; “We will support Ukraine and its people until peace returns to Europe,” he said.
For his part, Camille Gil Catey indicated that Europe is fully prepared for escalation by Russia and an attempt to transfer the battles to the heart of Europe itself, and stated:
- Providing massive support from weapons, especially tanks and artillery, to start a counterattack that exhausts Moscow.
- Tightening economic sanctions to ensure the blockade of Moscow and the disruption of its military factories.
- Not talking at the present time regarding any peace talks or a cease-fire.
- Reaching actual alternative solutions for Russian gas for Europe to get out of the energy trap.
- Most European and Central Asian countries increased defense spending, such as Poland, Finland, Japan and Taiwan.
Russia will not back down
In the other camp, it does not show any intentions of retreat or negotiation. In Moscow, Putin announced in a speech marking the anniversary of the military operation that the war continues and Russia will not back down from its goals.
On Friday, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said the only way for Moscow to ensure lasting peace with Ukraine was to push the borders of hostile countries as far back as possible, even if that meant the borders of Poland, a NATO member.
Oleg Artyovsk, a researcher on international affairs at the Russian military institution, “Volsk”, says, “The station for negotiation or resorting to peaceful solutions has already passed. At present, the equation has become a ‘zero’, and the matter will not be resolved without a military victory.”
And Oleg Artyovsk added, during his statements to “Sky News Arabia”, that Moscow will not back down because that would be a fracture and a defeat, which is what the West, led by Washington, wants.
The researcher on international affairs at the Russian military institution, Volsk, believes that all international moves, including Russia, indicate a rapid descent into an already comprehensive war for several reasons:
- China’s direct entry into the crisis line and Washington’s continued escalation towards Beijing.
- The West’s continued generous support of arms to Ukraine and the arming of Russia’s neighboring countries as well.
- The trend towards providing Kiev with fighters following agreeing to arm them with tanks.
For his part, the Russian researcher in the history of international relations, Solonov Plavrev, expects that China, India and the major influential countries may be able in the next stage to contain the situation and calm the atmosphere for a period of time by putting forward some initiatives, which each party will study.
And Solonov-Blavrev added, in his statement to “Sky News Arabia”: “However, softening the positions of the concerned parties depends to a large extent on the details of these initiatives. The positions are still rigid, and the Western countries will not make any concessions to Russia, because any concessions in the next stage mean the West’s loss.” in this confrontation.
