On September 30, there was a signing ceremony in the Kremlin on the annexation of four Ukrainian districts occupied by the Russian army. Before the signing, President Putin gave a long speech against the West, using derogatory rhetoric and expressions taken from the Soviet past, and detailed a long list of complaints against the West. It was a speech reflecting ultimate conceptual detachment from the West and the announcement of Russia as the leader of the countries that ostensibly suffer from Western hegemony. With this speech, Putin closed the door on the possibility of a political dialogue with the West and negotiations on a ceasefire with Ukraine. Moreover, the nuclear scenario may now spill over from the framework of the war between Russia and Ukraine and become global.
In Luhansk and Kherson Russian control is close to total, while in the Zaporizhia and Donetsk regions Russia controls only about half of the territory. It is not clear whether the Russian annexation refers to the Ukrainian administrative borders, or whether it refers to the territories that are now under Russian control. The Ukrainian counteroffensive continues, and Saturday night another area was liberated in the Donetsk region that includes the city of Lyman, with an important railway junction for troops transferring to the front, as well as logistical supplies. The announcement of the annexation is a significant change for Russia, and now the front shifts to the annexed Russian territory.
In response to the Russian announcement, the Ukrainians submitted an immediate request to join NATO in an expedited procedure. President Biden stated that the US will never recognize the occupied territories, the foreign ministers of the G7 and representatives of the European Union strongly condemned the Russian move, as did UN Secretary General António Guterres. Other countries, including Israel, South Korea, Kazakhstan, and Moldova announced they would not recognize the annexation. In addition, Western aid to Ukraine continues and the US is establishing a new command in Germany whose purpose will be to formalize the coordination of the supply of weapons and training to Ukraine. Europe, the US, and the UK imposed new sanctions following the Russian announcement. In other words, the West is not sitting idly by, and Moscow is now becoming increasingly isolated.
On September 30, there was a signing ceremony in the Kremlin on the annexation of four Ukrainian districts occupied by the Russian army. Before the signing, President Putin gave a long speech against the West, using derogatory rhetoric and expressions taken from the Soviet past, and detailed a long list of complaints against the West. It was a speech reflecting ultimate conceptual detachment from the West and the announcement of Russia as the leader of the countries that ostensibly suffer from Western hegemony. With this speech, Putin closed the door on the possibility of a political dialogue with the West and negotiations on a ceasefire with Ukraine. Moreover, the nuclear scenario may now spill over from the framework of the war between Russia and Ukraine and become global.
In Luhansk and Kherson Russian control is close to total, while in the Zaporizhia and Donetsk regions Russia controls only about half of the territory. It is not clear whether the Russian annexation refers to the Ukrainian administrative borders, or whether it refers to the territories that are now under Russian control. The Ukrainian counteroffensive continues, and Saturday night another area was liberated in the Donetsk region that includes the city of Lyman, with an important railway junction for troops transferring to the front, as well as logistical supplies. The announcement of the annexation is a significant change for Russia, and now the front shifts to the annexed Russian territory.
In response to the Russian announcement, the Ukrainians submitted an immediate request to join NATO in an expedited procedure. President Biden stated that the US will never recognize the occupied territories, the foreign ministers of the G7 and representatives of the European Union strongly condemned the Russian move, as did UN Secretary General António Guterres. Other countries, including Israel, South Korea, Kazakhstan, and Moldova announced they would not recognize the annexation. In addition, Western aid to Ukraine continues and the US is establishing a new command in Germany whose purpose will be to formalize the coordination of the supply of weapons and training to Ukraine. Europe, the US, and the UK imposed new sanctions following the Russian announcement. In other words, the West is not sitting idly by, and Moscow is now becoming increasingly isolated.