The US government is said to be secretly encouraging top Ukrainian politicians to signal a willingness to negotiate with Russia and to abandon their previously negative stance on this issue. The Washington Post reports, citing insiders. The US officials’ request is not aimed at bringing Ukraine to the negotiating table. Rather, it is said to be a calculated attempt to ensure that the government in Kyiv continues to receive support from other countries. This is happening especially against the background that the populations of some nations are currently struggling with the continuation of financial aid, as this can also mean a continuation of the war.
Zelenskyy’s bid to refrain from negotiations with Putin had raised concerns in parts of Europe, Africa and South America, where the war is particularly impacting the availability and cost of food and fuel, US officials said. “Ukraine fatigue is a real issue for some of our partners,” a US official with knowledge of the matter told the Washington Post. In the USA, too, at least among the Republicans, surveys indicate that the willingness to continue supporting the Ukrainian military with large sums is declining.
The Wagner mercenary group’s financier, Evgeny Prigozhin, has tried to cover up his efforts to establish an independent Russian power base. This is reported by The Institute for the Study of War (ISW). Prigozhin had previously met with Kursk businessmen to discuss organizing an unspecified citizen militia outside of the formal Russian military command structures.
However, when asked about this meeting by a journalist, the Wagner financier evaded and referred to the concept of the historical unity of Russia. He said that the Russian people, businesses, government and army must come together to fight for Russia’s sovereignty and future. The country has all the means to achieve its goals, including a strong president, a cohesive army and a large ethnic group, said Prigozhin, concluding his statement with a greeting from Wagner Group fighters – implying that they too will help preserve the Russian unit involved. In another media response, he dismissed allegations that his plans for an independent power base ran counter to Putin’s policies.
After the surprise attack by Ukrainian sea drones against the Russian Black Sea Fleet in its naval port near Sevastopol in Crimea, Ukraine wants to buy more weapons of this type. “We will start another fundraising campaign next week, we want to collect funds for a whole fleet of sea drones,” announced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his video address on Saturday evening. The purpose of these drones is clear. “Everyone has already seen how this works.”
According to the Ukrainian account, three Russian warships were hit during the attack on Sevastopol last weekend, including the new flagship “Admiral Makarov”. The Russian military has only admitted some minor damage without providing more details.
Alice Schwarzer has denied the accusation that she understands Putin. “At least if it is meant in the sense that I would betray the cause of the Ukrainians,” said the women’s rights activist of the German Press Agency in Cologne. But if that means she’s trying to understand Russian President Vladimir Putin’s motives, “then it’s actually true.” You always have to try to fathom the motives of your opponents Not be.”
At the end of April, Schwarzer initiated an open letter from 28 celebrities to Chancellor Olaf Scholz. In it they appealed to the SPD politician not to deliver more heavy weapons to Ukraine. The letter has now been signed by almost half a million people, said Schwarzer. “I consider the letter to be an important initiative because it closes the really dramatic contrast between the published opinion in the German media and the opinion of the people as reflected in surveys.”
The situation has only escalated since the letter was published. “Meanwhile, the danger of a nuclear war is even more acute, and Germany would be particularly at risk as a buffer zone between Russia and the western nuclear powers. We are really playing with fire.” She also wonders what will happen to the masses of weapons that the West is currently supplying to Ukraine after the war. “They end up on the black market in Europe. To the delight of the Mafia and the Islamists.”
Also Read: The Ukraine Update of November 5th
