Civilians take part in a training session of a Kyiv Territorial Defense unit on a Saturday in a forest on January 22, 2022 in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Sean Gallup | beautiful pictures
According to the senior mayor of Kyiv, who has called for greater unity among Western allies, the West should be aware of what “weaknesses” show when dealing with geopolitical crises such as the current hostilities between Ukraine and Russia.
Asked if the US was doing enough to help Ukraine when it could confront Russia militarily, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said “it’s never enough”.
“I believe that the West sometimes shows weakness in certain situations, and that we need to be more united, protect each other and defend our interests, defend the democracy that we have. has been struggling and growing in the Western world,” he told CNBC. Hadley Gamble in Kyiv on Wednesday.
“I believe that this unification will give us great strength,” he added, noting that better communication is needed between Western allies and that an invasion of Ukraine could lead to an invasion of Ukraine. “will be a problem for everyone.”
With Ukraine on high alert for a possible military confrontation with Russia, which has tens of thousands of troops along its border with the neighboring country, some Ukrainian officials have criticized Kyiv. excluded from high-level diplomatic negotiations between the US and NATO. and Russia to prevent a confrontation.
For his part, Klitschko publicly criticized the response of one of Ukraine’s European allies, Germanydescribed Berlin’s supply of 5,000 helmets to Ukraine as “a joke” that left him “speechless.”
“The behavior of the German government left me speechless. The Ministry of Defense clearly did not realize that we were confronting well-equipped Russian forces that could initiate another invasion of Ukraine at any time. any time”. he told the German newspaper Bild last Wednesday. “What kind of support will Germany send next?” he asks. “Pillow?”
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday after a news conference, Klitschko said Ukraine must now “prepare for any scenario” because there is no immediate sign of easing tensions, despite the Diplomatic talks continue between Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, and Western leaders.
Klitschko, a former boxer turned mayor, said less blood is wanted in Ukraine – especially given the deaths of more than 13,000 people in eastern Ukraine in the ongoing conflict between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian separatists in the Donbas region – but says, “we must defend our country.”
Competitive interests
Ukraine is not a member of NATO nor the EU, but has a pro-Western government. Russia insists it has no plans to invade Ukraine but annexed part of its territory, Crimea, in 2014 and backs two self-proclaimed pro-Russian republics in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.
NATO has no obligation to defend Ukraine, but it has increased its deployment in Eastern Europe in the event of a possible attack. Some countries, including the US and UK, have sent military equipment to Ukraine to help it defend itself, but others, such as France and Germany, are looking at negotiations with Russia and Ukraine in an effort to help Ukraine. force to break the stalemate over what is largely seen as a war of geopolitical influence between Russia and the West, with Ukraine in the middle.
Russia has repeatedly said that it wants to protect its own security interests in the face of what it sees as the expansion of Western (i.e. NATO) military power on its doorstep in Europe and especially in Eastern Europe where missile defense systems are located. in Romania and Poland.
It demanded that Ukraine never be allowed to join NATO and that the military alliance back off its deployments in Eastern Europe. The US has rejected those requests but says there is room for further dialogue.
On Tuesday, Mr Putin accused Western nations of ignoring Russia’s main security concerns and said the US wanted to “contain Russia” and that it was using Ukraine to do it.
He also reiterated Moscow’s position that any possible Ukraine membership in NATO would “undermine Russia’s security.”
“Imagine that Ukraine is a NATO member, it is fully armed, it has advanced attack facilities like in Poland and Romania and it started operating in Crimea,” Putin said, describing Describes Crimea, a part of Ukraine annexed by Russia. in 2014, as a “sovereign territory of Russia.”
“Imagine that Ukraine is a NATO member state and it starts a military operation. What should we do then, [should we] against NATO? Does anyone think at least something about that? Obviously not. “
Meanwhile, in Kyiv on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that any military confrontation with neighboring Russia would lead to “all-out war”.
Speaking after meeting British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Mr Zelenskyy said that any conflict with Russia would affect the whole of Europe.
“Unfortunately, there will be a tragedy if an escalation against our state begins. That is why I openly say: This will not be a war between Ukraine and Russia – this will be is a war in Europe, an all-out war, because no longer will people give up their territory and their people,” The president said, speaking to reporters during a press conference with Johnson.
