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The assessment that “having failed in almost all his pursuits”, the Russian President Putin Russia may seek to “cancer” inside Ukraine by ordering its forces to fortify and encircle positions as they did in 2014 in Crimea, said the United Kingdom’s Secretary of Defense Ben Wallace.
Speaking to Sky News this morning, Putin said it could make it very difficult for Ukrainians to oust the Russians from their country.
He added that in order for this not to happen, the West should help the Ukrainians to maintain military momentum developed to repel Russian forces.
To the question whether during her speech yesterday at the Mansion House the Minister of Foreign Affairs Liz Trace meant that the aim is to expel the Russians even from the Crimea, when he referred to the withdrawal of the Russians “from all over Ukraine”, Mr. Wallace seemed to confirm this.
“The international community believes that Russia should leave Ukraine. The international community has condemned Russia for its invasion of Crimea, which was illegal in 2014, and for its invasion of Donetsk. “We are constantly saying that Russia should leave the sovereign territory of Ukraine, so that has not changed,” said the British Defense Secretary.
He added that Britain supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity and that includes Crimea.
However, he noted that we are still far from talking about the recapture of Crimea and that the first thing is for the Russians to leave the territories where they are based on the plan of the new invasion.
In the same interview, Wallace said Britain wanted to send anti-ship missiles to Ukraine to strike at the Russian fleet in the Black Sea. The goal, Wallace said, is twofold: to allow grain exports from Ukraine and to stop bombing Russian ships. “Russia can not control the Black Sea,” he said.
He also said it would be a “strategic blunder” by Putin if Russia carried out fake attacks in Transnistria. Describing the Russian president as a “nationalist”, he said he was “almost in despair” trying to escalate the conflict, potentially feeding theories about the “ownership” of Russian-speaking populations in other countries like those of the Nazis in World War II.
Speaking to the BBC shortly afterwards, the minister reiterated that “if Ukraine chose to target the logistical infrastructure of the Russian army (inside Russian territory), that would be legitimate under international law.” He added that Britain was assisting Ukraine with weapons, which were used “mainly” against Russian forces on Ukrainian territory.
A similar statement by Undersecretary of Defense James Hippie had sparked warnings from Moscow about strikes against British targets, such as the country’s diplomats returning to Kyiv.
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