International leaders and defense officials have been speculating for weeks about what Russian President Vladimir Putin might say about his plans for Ukraine during a speech at Russia’s Victory Day celebrations on Monday. All of them will have to keep guessing as Putin offered little information on the direction of the war, according to CNN.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has said that Putin may have used this historic day to escalate the so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine (Russia calls the war in Ukraine a “special military operation”). and declare war. Even if that was Putin’s plan, he was unlikely to do so after Wallace’s remarks, not wanting to appear so predictable to his Western enemies.
Instead, the Russian president used his speech to combine history with the present, relying on patriotic sentiment to justify his war.
Out of respect for the Soviet war heroes who helped defeat Nazi Germany in World War II – the reason Russia celebrates Victory Day – Putin referred to new Nazi threats in Ukraine, reiterating his baseless justification as an operation. “de-Naziization” of the nation.
Referring to the threat posed by NATO troops in Europe, Putin said: “Everything showed that a confrontation with the neo-Nazis, the Banderites (Ukrainian nationalists) whom the United States and its younger allies are counting on, would be inevitable.”
“The danger was growing every day. Russia repulsed this attack in a precautionary manner. That was the only right decision and it was a timely decision. The decision of an independent, sovereign and powerful nation,” Putin said.
Putin had no choice but to use his speech to continue “selling” his war to his own people. After all, he has very few successes in Ukraine to be proud of. All it can do now is keep the Russians on its side, as the country faces tough economic sanctions imposed by the West.
The question now is whether Putin will use this day – or even this week – to escalate the war in other ways.
There are growing concerns that Russian forces will once again turn to air raids and long-range missiles that can be fired from a distance. This is worrying, according to the report, as such attacks tend to cause huge casualties among civilians. The bombing of a school in Luhansk, eastern Ukraine, where fears that at least 60 people were sheltered over the weekend were killed is a prime example.
After Russia’s failure to seize territory in northern Ukraine and around the capital, Kyiv, fighting continues in the east and south, where it has been present through pro-Russian separatists for years. The possibility of Russia gaining nothing, or very little, in Ukraine now exists.
Whether or not something changes on Victory Day, a new chapter in the war is inevitably expected to be written soon.
Read also:
Source: Capital
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
