Zelensky and Biden at the White House. Photo: AFP.
Russia on Thursday accused Ukraine and the United States of not seeking peace, a day after Washington promised more weapons for kyiv during a visit by President Volodimir Zelensky to meet his counterpart Joe Biden, while the White House indicated that it is the Kremlin the one that “shows no interest in meaningful diplomacy” to end the conflict that is about to complete 10 months.
Russian President Vladimir Putin assured that his army will find the “antidote” to avoid the Patriot air defense system, which the United States will send to Ukraine for the first time.
“The Patriot system is quite old. It doesn’t work like our S-300 (air defense) system. Those who oppose us say it’s a defensive weapon. Alright, we’ll keep that in mind. There will always be an antidote. So the people who are doing that are doing it in vain. It only serves to prolong the conflict,” the Kremlin leader told reporters after a meeting of the Russian State Council.
As he explained, Moscow’s goal is not to settle into “inertia” but to “finish this war, and that’s what we aspire to.”
“All armed conflicts end with negotiations. The sooner kyiv understands that, the better it will be,” He added in statements that were reproduced by the AFP news agency and then reiterated: “We will strive for this to end. And the sooner, the better, of course.”
By contrast, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Russia showed no real interest in ending the war that began on February 24.
“At this time, Russia shows no interest in meaningful diplomacy” to end the conflict, Blinken told a news conference.
The head of US diplomacy noted that spoke virtually on Thursday with G7 foreign ministers about Zelensky’s ideas for a “just peace” in Washingtonwhich he described as “a good start”.
The Kremlin accuses the United States of pushing Ukraine to continue the war. Photo: AFP
Any peace must be “just and lasting,” he remarked, adding that the United States will not impose its own solutions on Ukraine.
“Durable, in the sense that we want to make sure it sticks and that we’re not just putting Ukraine in a position where Russia will repeat what it did a month, six months or a year later,” he stressed.
He assessed that Moscow could immediately end the war by withdrawing its troops. “In the absence of that, we would have to see some significant evidence that it is prepared to negotiate a just and lasting peace,” but Russia is not doing that, she said.
Putin again defended the launch of his offensive and assured that he had “no choice” but to do so to “defend the people” in Ukraine.
“The roots between the peoples of Russia and Ukraine are stronger than those who try to divide us.”he asserted.
Putin accused Russia’s rivals, starting with The United States, for having “always” tried to divide the “Russian world”, a concept that according to the Kremlin encompasses all Russian-speaking populations.
“Our eventual enemies, our opponents, have always dreamed of that and have always done it. They have tried to divide us and rule us in separate pieces,” he said, quoted by the Sputnik news agency.
On the other hand, the president indicated that his country is capable of increasing the production of arms: “We still lack something: loitering ammunition, drones, etc.”
Hours earlier, the spokesman for the Russian presidency, Dmitri Peskov, estimated that Zelenski’s visit to Washington shows that the Ukrainian president and his US counterpart have no intention of “listening to Russia” and that the White House was carrying out “an indirect war” against them in Ukraine.
“We can note with regret that neither President Biden nor President Zelensky have said anything that could be seen as a possible willingness to listen to Russia’s concerns,” the spokesman told reporters.
The Ukrainian flag autographed supposedly by the front line troops in Bakhmut. Photo: AFP.
Zelensky flew to Washington on Wednesday, met Biden at the White House and addressed Congress, his first known trip abroad since the invasion began.
During his brief stay, The United States announced a new $1.8 billion military aid package for Ukraine, in addition to the Patriot surface-to-air missiles Zelensky was demanding.
“Ukraine is holding its lines and will never surrender,” Zelensky said. on Wednesday night in a speech before both houses of the US Congress, where he was received with standing ovations and applause.
In this regard, Peskov pointed out that in this visit there were no “true calls for peace” or “warnings” from the US to Zelensky against “continuous shelling of residential buildings in populated areas of Donbass”a region of eastern Ukraine partly controlled by pro-Russian separatists and often targeted by Ukrainian forces.
“This shows that the United States continues its de facto and indirect war line with Russia, down to the last Ukrainian,” the spokesman added.
During Zelensky’s speech on Wednesday, US Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stood behind him holding a Ukrainian flag autographed by frontline troops in Bakhmut, in the disputed Ukrainian province of Donetsk, in the east of the country.
Donetsk has been a city in dispute for months and – according to Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar – “the eastern fortress of Ukraine”.
Zelensky told Congress that the United States and Ukraine are “allies” in the war against Russia. adding that Washington’s support was “vital” not only to resist the Russian invasion, but to achieve a “tipping point” on the battlefield.
The Ukrainian president stressed that “Russian tyranny has lost power” over his country and assured that the Ukrainians and the Americans will put those who challenge freedom in their place.
