19 March 2022 20:27

Politics

Putin's showmanship and complaints that Ukraine is being held by the hand by US: Foreign media digest as of March 19

Authors

Olexandr Zakharov , Ksenia Lisna

Western media continue to report about the war in Ukraine: today, on March 19, the media covered how Russia is using peace talks with Ukraine to regroup troops, the UK’s insight that Putin will not stop in our country, as well as Russia’s showmanship about its hypersonic milssiles.

In addition, Europe was called upon to completely ban trade with the Russian Federation, and Japan entered into a conversation with India that has not yet condemned Russian aggression.

offers an up-to-date review of what the European and American media are reporting, covering 24 days of active Russian invasion.

Kremlin lies: Russia is simply regrouping troops

Photo: twitter.com/trussliz

The Times published an interview with British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.

The Prime Minister will head to Brussels next week for a or a summit of Nato leaders that will also be attended by US President Joe Biden. The outlet expresses the hope that it is at the summit that the discussion will to turn to the "endgame" for the war.

Truss herself, however, is withering about the prospect of a successful outcome, warning that Russia is using the talks as a diversion as it attempts to revitalise its stuttering military campaign.

"I’m very sceptical," she says. "What we’ve seen is an attempt to create space for the Russians to regroup. Their invasion isn’t going according to plan. We don’t see any serious withdrawal of Russian troops or any serious proposals on the table."

According to her, the Russians have lied and lied and lied.

"I fear the negotiation is yet another attempt to create a diversion and create a smokescreen from the appalling [atrocities]... I mean, if a country is serious about negotiations, it doesn’t indiscriminately bomb civilians that day," she stressed.

At the same time, she added that Ukraine as a sovereign nation is fully entitled to undertake any negotiation process it sees fit.

Truss stresses that there’s been a series of agreements that haven’t given Ukraine the security and self-determination it deserves.

"The West is prepared for all eventualities"

According to Truss, it's important to remain strong, not being diverted by the talk of negotiations away from putting on more sanctions, sending in more lethal aid.

The "precursor" for any negotiations would have to be Russia leaving Ukraine. The Russian casualties on a scale Putin wasn’t expecting are clear. But it's too early to be complacent, Truss is sure, because he can resort to any extremism.

The West is prepared, she says, for all eventualities, including the use of chemical or nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

"It’s very clear to us that what has already happened in Ukraine crosses the threshold on war crimes. We’re collecting the evidence for that to be able to hold Putin to account, "the Foreign Secretary stresses.

The tragedy of Putin, she says, is that he did not believe that sanctions would be imposed, and Ukraine would defend itself so hard.

The sanctions on Russian oligarchs, Truss suggests, will never be lifted. Truss praises Germany for its "180-degree change" in position, from taking a " free-market" approach to Russia to suspending the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

"The free world overall has focused too much on getting cheap oil, cheap electronics, cheap goods at the expense of our freedom and security," she says.

Russian hypersonic missiles: Is this the beginning of air attacks?

Photo: Russian propaganda media

The BBC reflects on how significant Russia's claims about the use of hypersonic missiles are. Russia's military has said it fired a "Kinzhal" hypersonic ballistic missile and destroyed a big underground arms depot in western Ukraine

If confirmed, it would be Russia's first use in this war of the Kinzhal—or Dagger—ballistic missile launched from the air, most likely by a MiG-31 warplane.

Photo: Wikipedia

Russian leader Vladimir Putin unveiled the Kinzhal four years ago as one of a series of invincible weapons.

The Kinzhal can carry a nuclear warhead as well as a conventional one, and recent reports said MiG-31 fighters had been sent to Kaliningrad.

Even if this is true, Russia does not have many such weapons, experts say.

"It's a sign of showmanship. Even if it's used we should consider it as an isolated moment because Russia doesn't have a large number of these missiles," says Dominika Kunertova of the Center for Security Studies in Zurich.

According to her, It's a signal to the West, because Putin is annoyed that the West is daring to shift all these weapons to Ukraine. It's also questionable that this missile is so accurate.

Putin did not believe in Kyiv’s accession to NATO

Photo: Getty Images

The BBC also quoted British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as saying that Putin decided to launch his invasion of Ukraine over the fear of having a free, democratic nation as his neighbour.

Johnson said that Putin did not really believe Ukraine was going to join the Nato, or in the "semi-mystical guff" about "the origins of the Russian people" spouted by the Russian president.

At the same time, according to the British, Putin "will not stop in Ukraine" if the invasion goes his way.

"The end of freedom in Ukraine will mean the extinction of any hope of freedom in Georgia and then Moldova — it will mean the beginning of a new age of intimidation across eastern Europe from the Baltic to the Black Sea."

Johnson added that the UK must now take the "bold steps necessary" to end their dependence on Russia's oil and gas.

Risk of human trafficking for children

Photo: unicef.org/ukraine/

Sky News reports that children fleeing the war in Ukraine are at increased risk, according to UNICEF.

At least 1.5 million children have fled the war in Ukraine since the invasion began on 24 February, with thousands more displaced within the country.

Unicef has now warned that children fleeing their homes are facing a further threat from human traffickers.

Recent analysis conducted by Unicef and Inter-Agency Coordination Group against Trafficking (ICAT) found that 28% of identified trafficking victims are children.

However, experts believe children would likely account for an even higher proportion of potential trafficking victims from Ukraine. This is because women and children account for nearly all the refugees.

Around 500 unaccompanied minors were identified crossing from Ukraine to Romania from 24 February to 17 March.

Kremlin complains that US is preventing them from reaching an agreement with Ukraine

Sky News also quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as warning that Russia's relations with China would only get stronger under the current global circumstances.

"This co-operation will get stronger, because at a time when the West is blatantly undermining all the foundations on which the international system is based, of course we — as two great powers — need to think how to carry on in this world," Lavrov stated.

He went on to claim that the US is preventing Ukraine from agreeing to Russia's demands.

"It is constantly felt that the Ukrainian delegation is being held by the hand, most likely by the Americans, not allowing them to agree to the demands that I think are absolutely minimal."

Poland calls for EU to ban all trade with Russia

Photo: Wikipedia

The Guardian, citing Reuters, reports that Poland is calling on the EU to impose a total ban on trade with Russia. This was stated by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

"Poland is proposing to add a trade blockade to this package of sanctions as soon as possible, [including] both of its seaports, but also a ban on land trade. Fully cutting off Russia’s trade would further force Russia to consider whether it would be better to stop this cruel war," Morawiecki said.

Poland’s call for Moscow to face tougher economic repercussions for its invasion of Ukraine comes after EU member states agreed on a fourth package of sanctions against Russia this week.

Japan had a conversation with India about Ukraine

Photo: Wikipedia

The Telegraph, meanwhile, reports that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishid told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Russia's invasion of Ukraine had shaken "the foundation of international order" and required a clear response.

"We (Kishida and Modi) confirmed any unilateral change to the status quo by force cannot be forgiven in any region, and it is necessary to seek peaceful resolutions of disputes based on international law," Kishida told reporters after meeting Modi in New Delhi.

While Japan has imposed sanctions on dozens of Russian individuals and organisations and accepted Ukrainian refugees, India have not condemned the invasion.

Instead of an afterword. The West seems to have realized that Russia is only using the talks as a temporary pause to redeploy troops (while bombing Ukrainian cities), and certainly will not stop in Ukraine. At the same time, the Kremlin is trying to intimidate the West with new missiles, although it doesn’t have much of them, and to pave the way for the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine in order to blame NATO.

Moscow continues to lie and claims that it is the United States that is preventing Ukraine from "caving in to" its demands, although they were initially unacceptable for Kyiv. Alarming are the warnings about the risk of trafficking for refugee children. Meanwhile, Poland urging the EU to stop all trade with the aggressor and Japan urging India to condemn the war in Ukraine sound encouraging. Ukraine continues to defend its independence for 24 days.