The night of the war at a glance: Selenskyi expects help from the “free world” – Presidential adviser sees Russia’s army and economy shaking

The night of the war at a glance
Selenskyi expects help from the “free world” – Presidential adviser sees Russia’s army and economy shaking

The Ukrainian head of state is calling for more pressure from the West on Russia. According to Kiev, the Russian military is in a “third phase” of the war. Now try to secure the land gains achieved so far. Below is an overview of what happened during the night and an outlook for the day.

Almost two and a half months after Russian troops invaded Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for even more pressure from the international community on Moscow. “With every day of war, global threats increase, there is a new opportunity for Russia to provoke instability in other parts of the world, not only here in Europe,” said Zelenskyy in his daily video address on Friday evening. In the meantime, however, men and women are dying in Ukraine “who are doing their best so that everyone can live freely,” said Zelenskyj. “Therefore, much more pressure on Russia is needed.”

Selenskyj criticizes the refusal to help

Despite the clear situation, there are countries in which sanctions against Moscow are being withheld or aid for Ukraine is being blocked, Zelenskyy criticized. However, he did not specifically name a country. It is now known that Russia’s blockade of Ukrainian ports and the war as a whole have provoked a major food crisis. “And Russian officials are also openly threatening the world that there will be famines in dozens of countries.” “In fact, no one can predict today how long this war will last,” Zelensky said. “But we are doing everything we can to liberate our country quickly. To do this, Ukraine needs the help of its partners, “from European countries, from the countries of the whole free world.”

The head of the Ukrainian military intelligence service, on the other hand, predicted in an extremely optimistic sounding prognosis that the war would end with a Russian defeat by the end of the year. There will be a turnaround on the fronts by mid-August at the latest, Major General Kyrylo Budanov told the British broadcaster Sky News. “The turning point comes in the second half of August.” By the end of the year, Ukraine will regain control of all its territories, including the Crimean Peninsula. Budanov also expected major changes in the Kremlin. In his view, a coup against Russian President Vladimir Putin is already underway. He did not provide evidence for his claims.

Kiev’s presidential adviser: Russia’s army and economy are shaking

According to Ukraine’s presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych, Russia’s army and economy are standing on feet of clay. According to the Unian agency, Arestovych said that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s image of the “invincible, second-biggest army in the world” had already turned out to be “fake”. The reality of the past few weeks has shown a real picture of the combat capability of the Russian army: “It threatened to dismantle NATO, but has already failed at two villages in the Sumy region (in north-eastern Ukraine).”

At the same time, Selenskyj’s advisor predicted what he believed to be the imminent collapse of the Russian economy in the summer. “Any attempt to negotiate with the West will fail,” said Arestovych. This will make itself felt in July or August at the latest in the event of a possible mobilization. He questioned whether the Russian economy could withstand this pressure. “There can be no healthy economy in a country where everything else is rotten.”

Kyiv sees “third phase” of war

The Ukrainian leadership sees the beginning of the “third phase” of the war and a protracted struggle associated with it. “Phase one” was an attempt to overrun Ukraine “in a few days,” said Viktor Andrusyw, an advisor at Ukraine’s interior ministry, on television that night. In the second phase, the Ukrainian forces were to be encircled and crushed in several boilers. “And they didn’t do that either.”

In the new “third phase” the Russian military prepared to defend the territory gained so far. “It shows that they want to make a long war out of it,” said Andrusyw. Apparently, the Russian government thinks that it can force the West to the negotiating table and thus force Ukraine to give in.

Negotiations for Azovstal defenders difficult

However, according to Kiev, the negotiations about a possible free withdrawal or partial withdrawal of the Ukrainian soldiers who were surrounded at the Azovstal plant in Mariupol are “extremely difficult”. That said the Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Wereschuk, who is responsible for the talks, as reported by the Unian agency. “I share the fear and concern of those close to the fort’s defenders,” she said. But there is war. “And in war there are no miracles, only bitter realities.” Therefore, only a “sober and pragmatic approach” will help in this case. With the help of the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross, Vereshchuk has been trying for days to talk to the Russian side about a possible way out for the Ukrainian troops holed up in the steelworks in the port city of Mariupol. “But negotiations with the enemy are extremely difficult,” she said. “The outcome may not please everyone.”

Turkey also got involved in the negotiations about the defenders of Azovstal. The Russian military has so far refused any concessions and is demanding the surrender of the entrenched Ukrainians. According to estimates, around 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers are still in the extensive plant, many of them wounded. Most of them belong to the “Azov” regiment, which the Russians classify as nationalist and right-wing extremist. In a video conference with Kyiv, the deputy commander of the Azov regiment reported that his unit had “destroyed” around 6,000 Russian soldiers so far. “In addition, 78 tanks and about 100 armored vehicles,” said Sviatoslav Palamar.” The information could not be independently verified. Another member of the regiment, David Chimik, reported heavy fighting around the steelworks. Nevertheless, he was optimistic. “We do not think about becoming martyrs, we are fighting for our lives and waiting for support,” Chimik was quoted as saying by Ukrajinska Pravda.

Odessa mayor recognizes Azovstal fighters as heroes

For the mayor of Odessa, the Azovstal fighters are real heroes. “In my opinion, Mariupol saves not only Odessa, but the whole of Ukraine,” said Hennady Trukhanov, according to the Unian agency. “Because this selflessness shown by our military in Mariupol is a true example of heroism.”

What does the day bring?

  • A few hours after the end of the G7 consultations on the Baltic Sea, a meeting of NATO foreign ministers begins in Berlin. The focus should again be on the Russian war in Ukraine and the question of Finland and Sweden becoming NATO members quickly.
  • In Finland, the social-democratic governing party wants to announce today what it thinks about a possible NATO membership. Following the positioning of Prime Minister Sanna Marin and President Sauli Niinistö for NATO membership, the Social Democrats are also likely to be in favor of joining. Then there would be a clear majority in parliament for the path to the military alliance.

You can read all further developments in our live ticker on the Ukraine war.

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