According to a Kyiv independent reporter, Valerii Zaluzhnyi (Ukraine‘s former commander in chief and current ambassador to the U.K.) said that it was almost impossible to avoid the state of a “protracted” conflict with Russia during a speech given at Chatham House on October 17.
Zaluzhnyi said that the West had not provided Kyiv with enough weapons in 2023. This is why Ukraine did not “significantly succeed in defeating Russia” in the counteroffensive.
“We ended up in a protracted state of war as a result.” He said that, in his opinion, it was almost impossible to find a way out.
The Economist published an interview and an op/ed by Zaluzhnyi in November 2023. In both, the general described the current state of war as “stalemate.”
The comment was in contrast to the public statements made by President Volodymyr Zelensky and his government and reportedly caused a rift between the two.
Zaluzhnyi warned Russia’s war against Ukraine had entered a “positional stage”. This new phase is characterized by a “static and attritional” fighting that will allow Russia’s military power to be restored.
Ukraine has had a difficult time defending its front line in 2024, especially in Donetsk Oblast where Russia has consistently focused its offensive potential.
After Ukraine’s withdrawal from Vuhledar at the beginning of October, Russian forces have focused their efforts on the Donetsk Oblast cities of Pokrovsk Toretsk and Kurakhove where outnumbered and under-equipped Ukrainian soldiers are losing ground slowly under Russian pressure.
“We end up in a protracted state of war.” In my opinion, a protracted war is almost impossible to end, said Valerii Zaluzhnyi. He was Ukraine’s former commander in chief and newly appointed ambassador to the U.K.
On October 17, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the victory plan included placing conventional missile capability in Ukraine, which would either force Russia into negotiations or destroy their military targets.
Dmytro Plenchuk, a Ukrainian Navy spokesperson, said that just because Russia deploys cruise missile carriers on the sea does not mean the ships will be used in an attack.
On October 17, President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Brussels to present his five point victory plan to Charles Michel, the president of the European Council.
The Ukrainian Southern Defense Forces revealed and attacked a Russian military training facility on October 15, posting footage of the attack.
The move was made after Russia and China blocked monitoring activities at United Nations. In March, Moscow vetoed a renewal of the panel of U.N. experts monitoring sanctions against Pyongyang for its nuclear and missile programs.
The German Air Force announced on October 16 that the Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft of Germany were scrambled because a Russian Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft was flying over the international waters in the Baltic Sea.
The Air Force reported that Ukrainian air defenses destroyed 22 of the 65 attack robots launched overnight. Two drones flew towards Belarus and 27 were destroyed by electronic warfare.
Pokrovske coal mining is located 10 km (6miles) west of Pokrovsk. It is the largest coal mine in Ukraine, and one of the biggest in Eastern Europe.
This includes 1,420 casualties that Russian forces have suffered in the last day.
Nikita Klinkov, deputy commander of an intelligence unit for the Russian military intelligence agency GRU, was killed in Moscow Oblast on October 16 by an unknown assailant. This was reported by Russian state-controlled media.
The White House has rescheduled the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting for November in a virtually based setting, after U.S. president Joe Biden cancelled all his foreign trips this month due to the effects of multiple hurricanes in the United States.
Voice of America reported that Smith stated, “We are not in a stage where the Alliance will be discussing issuing an invite in the near future.” Smith was speaking ahead of a NATO meeting of defense ministers in Brussels.
The Guardian reported that U.K. counterterrorism officials are investigating if Russian intelligence agents planted an incendiary inside a parcel which caught fire in a warehouse near Birmingham. The Guardian reported on Oct. 16 that U.K. counter-terrorism officials are investigating whether Russian intelligence officers planted an incendiary device inside a parcel that caught fire at a warehouse near Birmingham.
Mark Rutte, Secretary General of NATO, announced that the next meeting between the Ukraine and NATO Council will be held on October 17. The meeting will include defense ministers of NATO member states and Ukraine’s Rustem Umerov, the country’s Minister of Defense.
The White House released a statement saying that the new package would include “additional capabilities in air defense, air-to ground munitions, armored cars, and critical munitions for Ukraine’s urgent requirements.”
According to unnamed sources cited by RBC-Ukraine, the individual in question is Oleh Hrybenko. He is reportedly responsible, according to the media outlet, for maintaining the security at critical infrastructure facilities.
The tanks will be part of a larger package worth 245 million Australian Dollars ($163 millions).
It wasn’t the first time missile and drone debris was found on Moldovan soil.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that he would “if asked” speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin, but that no decisions would take place without the input from Ukraine or other Western Allies.
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