Russia and Ukraine entered a new round of tense and confusing situation: when the Ukrainian army was constantly circulating in counterattacks, Russia signed a statement of "take over territory"; Crimea Bridge caught fire; Western sanctions and military aid in recent days have increased, which shows that the situation has not developed in a direction of easing. In addition, Russian President Putin , Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov , and Russian Federal Security Conference Vice Chairman Medvedev mentioned the possibility of using nuclear weapons on different occasions. Although the expressions are slightly different, , the signals conveyed are all very clear.
Public opinion is worried that the unsatisfactory performance of the Russian army on the battlefield will promote Russia's use of nuclear weapons.
Putin said in a national televised speech on September 21: "When the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, Moscow will use all means to defend Russia and our people." (Xinhua News Agency Pictures)
Russian army retreated step by step
comprehensive Reuters , BBC and other foreign media reported that Gromov, the main Operations Department of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said on October 6 that in the past two weeks, the Ukrainian army has recaptured about 120 settlements during the advancement of Kharkiv , Donetsk and Khlsong .
Gromov said: "Since September 21, the Ukrainian army has successfully advanced 55 kilometers in the northeast, controlling 93 settlements and more than 2,400 square kilometers of land"; "In the direction of Khlsun, 29 settlements have been under our control since October 1."
On the same day, Ukrainian President Zelensky delivered a televised speech saying that Ukrainian troops have made "significant and rapid progress" in the counterattack against the Russian army in the past week. As the Russian army withdrew from the southern and eastern fronts, the Ukrainian army regained more settlements from the Khlsong Prefecture annexed by the Russian army. "In the Khlsong area alone, more than 500 square kilometers of territory and dozens of settlements were liberated from Russia's pseudo referendum."
3 Ukrainian army has made major breakthroughs in the southern region. Screenshot of BBC report
The Ukrainian army planned a "big counterattack" in early September. It took only 5 days to push the front near Donetsk to the situation in early March, regaining a large area of lost land in the southeast. After regaining control of Kharkov, Ukraine's second largest city, the Ukrainian army continued to push the front. On October 1, Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed that the Russian army had lost control of Liman. Liman is a logistics and transportation hub in the northern part of Donetsk and is very important to the Russian military's military operations. The Ukrainian army successfully recaptured Liman, which was a major blow to Russia. On October 6, the Ukrainian army announced that it would re-enter the Luhansk area.
Facing continuous losses on the battlefield, the Chief Executive of the Chechen Republic of Russia Kadrov was very angry, He suggested that Moscow should use low-equivalent nuclear weapons to reverse the current unfavorable situation on the battlefield.
According to Russian News Agency , on October 8 local time, in the early morning, the Kerch Strait Bridge (also known as the Crimea Bridge) was attacked by the missile , and some sections of the road were damaged. Railway and road traffic on the bridge was temporarily interrupted. Russian President Putin ordered the establishment of a government committee on the Crimea Bridge emergency and conducted a thorough investigation. According to the Ukrainian State News Agency, Podolak, adviser to the Ukrainian Presidential Office, said that the Crimea Bridge incident is just the beginning.
Is there a "legitimate reason" to use nuclear weapons?
Since Russia launched a special military operation against Ukraine on February 24, the Russian authorities have issued more than once warning that if Western weapons aid to Ukraine pose a threat to Russia's territorial security, the Russian army will likely "use nuclear weapons and other new weapons to fight back."
However, this does not seem to have a deterrent effect on the West. The United States and Europe continue to provide military assistance to Ukraine and increase sanctions on Russia.
The US State Department website issued an announcement on October 4, providing Ukraine with another US$625 million in military aid. According to statistics, the total amount of military aid to Ukraine since the Biden administration took office has exceeded US$17.5 billion. The US Defense News said that this batch of weapons includes more "Divine Sword" guided shells and "Haimas" artillery systems.
EU 27 ambassadors reached an agreement on the new round of sanctions against Russia on October 5 , , which includes setting an upper limit on Russian oil prices, This is also the eighth round of sanctions against Russia since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
According to the European Parliament website on October 6, the European Parliament passed a resolution on the same day urging EU member states to significantly increase military aid to Ukraine.
In addition, according to the Russian Tashi on October 7, pro-Russian leader Pushlin, said that there are many mercenaries from Poland and the United Kingdom on the front line of . Military personnel from NATO countries are no longer "shy" and are increasingly "frankly" showing their existence.
The West is trying hard to exaggerate Russia Nuclear threat
In Western media reports, there are countless public opinion about Putin's inevitable use of nuclear weapons. For example, Dan Gori, deputy director of the American Institute of Public Policy, published an article in National Interest on October 3 warning that Putin's recent moves indicate his plan to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine. The principle of Russia's use of nuclear weapons shows that when the country suffers from conventional aggression that threatens the survival of the country, the use of nuclear weapons is a legitimate move.
Zelensky said in an interview with the BBC that Russia is preparing for the nuclear war . BBC report screenshot
The British " Times " reported on October 3 that NATO reminded its member states that Russia will conduct nuclear tests on the Ukrainian border. The report also said that Putin sent a "nuclear war military train" to the Ukrainian front to prepare for the "major escalation" of the Ukrainian conflict in .
French "New Observer" even listed "four possible scenarios of Putin's appeal to nuclear weapons" on October 6. Recently, the news that Russia dispatched the nuclear submarine "Belgorod" to Kara Sea to test the "Poseidon" nuclear-powered unmanned submarine , known as the "doomsday nuclear weapon", has made NATO even more uneasy.
. At the national level, it is reported that two US cobra reconnaissance aircraft dedicated to detecting ballistic missiles and nuclear tests in various countries have been urgently launched for 24-hour reconnaissance. At the same time, the governments of the United States, Denmark, Poland, Romania , Bulgaria , Estonia and other countries have notified their citizens to leave Russia as soon as possible.
U.S. President Biden On October 6th said that the world is facing the worst risk of nuclear war in 60 years. " Since the Kennedy era and the Cuban missile crisis , we have not faced the prospect of a 'nuclear end'. Putin is not kidding when talking about possible use of tactical nuclear weapons , because his army is not performing well."Biden also said, "The use of tactical nuclear weapons will quickly lead to the situation getting out of control and put the world in destruction. "
UN Secretary-General: "Our world is in danger"
In response to the public opinion that Russia said Russia would use nuclear weapons, Russian President's press secretary Peskov responded that Russia does not want to pay attention to such remarks from the West. How Russia uses nuclear weapons has clear nuclear policy provisions, and Russia will strictly follow the relevant The document stipulates the use of nuclear weapons, and there is no other reason for using nuclear weapons.
Russian Federation Commission Chairman Matviyanko At the recent G20 Speaker Summit, the West pointed out that the West used all means to discredit Russia, but Russia has never had a plan to threaten anyone with nuclear weapons, and only regarded nuclear weapons as a means of deterrence, because there is a provision that Russia is invaded and attacked. Nuclear weapons can be used as defense means.
Regarding the nuclear issue, the five permanent members have issued the " Joint Statement on Preventing Nuclear War and Avoiding an Arms Race ", which clearly stated that nuclear war cannot be won or defeated. However, many military experts unanimously agree that nuclear weapons, as a last killer, are forced to retreat and have no choice but to retreat, it is not ruled out that Russia will take extreme measures.
As of the current situation, Putin has officially signed the treaty for the four Ukrainian places to join Russia, and Zelensky also signed to show that he will never negotiate with Putin. The two sides are tense and do not give in. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine is obviously at a dangerous critical point. As the Secretary-General of the United Nations Guterres warned in his speech at the opening ceremony of the UN General Assembly, "Our world is in danger and is paralyzed." "
On September 20, at the United Nations headquarters in New York, UN Secretary-General Guterres delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the 77th United Nations General Assembly General Debate opening ceremony. (Xinhua News Agency Photo)
Reality has proven that on this road to escalating tensions , The fire will not help resolve the current war, but will only intensify the conflict. Guterres stressed that hope still exists, and cooperation and dialogue are the only way ahead.
Former German Prime Minister Merkel also publicly reminded on October 6th when attending the event: "Only with the participation of Russia, Europe can achieve lasting peace. If this is not really done, ' Cold War will not really end'. "
So, should we continue to watch coldly, add fuel to fire and put all mankind in the terrible nuclear disaster, or calm down and resolve the crisis peacefully, and stop the loss in time?
(text丨Reporter Shu Zhiyong of this magazine)
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