Donetsk and four regions under the control of the Russian army, whether it is the "independence referendum" or the "referendum to Russia", have not been recognized by the international community. UN Secretary-General Guterres even publicly condemned the Russian government's ambition to annex Ukrainian territory. At present, the process of incorporating four regions into Russia including "Donetsk" is still in progress, and has become a one-man show for the Russian government. The only substantial impact it has probably further stimulated Western aid to Ukraine, including military aid and economic aid.
The United States and Germany respectively announced a new batch of military aid to Ukraine, including 18 "Haimas" rocket launchers . It should be noted that the United States and Germany provided Ukraine with a total of 200 heavy trailers in this military aid, which is considered an unattractive but extremely important signal:
Although the West has not yet provided Ukraine with modern main battle tanks (the photo of suspected Ukrainian trailer transporting "Abrams" has nothing to do with Ukraine), it is helping the Ukrainian army increase the long-distance maneuverability of heavy equipment to save the precious mechanical life of tracked heavy weapons such as main battle tanks and self-propelled artillery . This is extremely important for the Ukrainian army, which is gradually taking the initiative in the entire battlefield, and is conducive to the rapid long-range mobilization of heavy armored troops on the front line of thousands of kilometers.
In addition, the latest news shows that South Korea will provide Ukraine with about US$2.9 billion worth of military equipment. The specific list is still unclear, but some analysts believe that South Korea is likely to provide Ukraine with a series of advanced weapons, including the K239 rocket launcher. The K239 rocket launcher is the Korean version of " Haimas ". The main reason why South Korea developed this rocket launcher is to fill the gap in the United States' failure to sell cluster munitions to other countries and the tactical missile in the range of over 300 kilometers. In other words, Ukraine may be able to launch cluster rockets and Korean version tactical missiles from South Korea.
It should be noted that the US$2.9 billion worth of military aid provided by South Korea to Ukraine was paid by the US government. Military aid to Ukraine in the west has greatly stimulated the development of military industry, including South Korea. Most of the major Western military enterprises have participated in military aid to Ukraine. They not only directly manufacture high-tech weapons for the Ukrainian army, but also fill the equipment gap brought by various countries after military aid to Ukraine.
U.S. Secretary of State Blinken announced that Washington will not stop Ukraine from using Western-provided weapons to strike the eastern Ukraine region where there has been a referendum, and Kiev has the right to defend itself "on its own territory." Blinken stressed that the US government will not recognize the "referendum on Russia" in four regions including Donetsk and will not recognize any changes in their status. The United States will work with other countries to continue to regard these areas as part of Ukrainian territory. The Ukrainian government will continue to approach the zone to recover lost land, while Washington will provide necessary support for Kiev.
As of now, all military aid provided by the West to Ukraine is free. In other words, the Ukrainian government does not have to spend a penny on huge military aid. The new " Lease Act" signed by US President Biden in May has not yet come into effect.
Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova said that this is a good thing for Ukraine, which means that the United States and other countries are free of charge for military aid, and through communication, it is ensured that Ukraine can obtain appropriate weapons. The new Lendance Act will only be used when the U.S. Congress refuses to fund military aid, and now, there is no need to use the Lendance Act at all.
