As Russia stepped up its offensive in eastern and southern Ukraine and captured the town of Avdiyivka last week, Moscow has beefed up its capabilities as the second anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine approaches.
Ukraine is marking the tenth anniversary of the Maidan revolution on Tuesday, when over 100 people were killed and several hundred injured in clashes between demonstrators and security forces. On February 20, 2014, the largest number of protesters were killed.
Protests during the 2013-2014 revolution overthrew pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and brought a pro-Western government to power. After that, Russia annexed Crimea and fighting with pro-Russian separatists began in Eastern Ukraine.
“It’s been 10 years since the attempts to destroy us and our independence,” V. Zelenskis said on Facebook on Tuesday.
“But we were strong 10 years ago and we are still strong today,” he added.
Andrijus Yermaks, adviser to the President of Ukraine, stated that Moscow “tried to turn us into its colony, but did not achieve its goal. We will win.”
According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 81 clashes between Ukrainian and Russian forces took place over the past 24 hours, adding that the Russians conducted 87 airstrikes.
Five civilians were killed in a strike in a village near the Russian border in Ukraine’s Sumy region, Ukrainian forces said.
Ukraine says it is running out of ammunition and projectiles, and the situation is complicated by the fact that the Republican-controlled US House of Representatives has blocked $60 billion. dollars (55.7 billion euros) aid package for Kyiv.
“The situation is very difficult”
“The situation is very difficult in several parts of the front line, where Russian forces have concentrated the largest reserves,” said V. Zelensky, who visited the troops in the Kharkiv region on Monday.
The Ukrainian president pointed out that Moscow is taking advantage of the fact that his country does not receive timely Western military support, and emphasized that there is now a serious shortage of artillery, front-line air defense systems and longer-range weapons.
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, speaking with V. Zelensky on Sunday, stated that he hopes that the US Congress will finally approve the aid package for Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal also expressed hope that Congress will take action when it returns from recess and that Kyiv will continue its fight once morest Moscow with international support.
“I believe that the United States will also support Ukraine, as will the European Union, Japan, all the G7 [G-7] countries, [Tarptautinis valiutos fondas] The IMF and all international financial organizations,” he said at a press conference in Tokyo when asked regarding the West’s weariness over the war in Ukraine.
“That’s why we can’t talk regarding fatigue, because it’s an existential war – you can’t be tired when you’re fighting for your future, for your life (…) for the global security order,” D. Šmyhalis added.
According to Mr. Biden, if Ukraine loses support, it may lose another city. Ukrainian military commanders predict that Russia will move troops from Avdiyivka to other parts of the front line.
After Ukrainian troops withdrew from Avdiyivka, the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said the Russians had launched a cyber operation “aimed at causing panic in the Ukrainian information space and weakening Ukraine’s fighting spirit.”
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2024-05-03 16:45:12