“Russia only negotiates if it feels threatened”: CIA director visits Kiev Kenya lifts logging ban – Greenpeace warns of catastrophic consequences

At the beginning of this year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that everything possible would be done “to thwart Russian aggression this year”. William J. Burns, director of the US secret service CIA, is said to have found out how to do this during a visit to Kiev. The Washington Post reports this, citing several US officials who wished to remain anonymous.

While Ukrainian officials have admitted that the current counter-offensive is not progressing as quickly as planned, they also described a plan for Kiev to force the Kremlin into a ceasefire and possible negotiations.

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“Russia will only negotiate if it feels threatened,” a senior Ukrainian official said, according to the Washington Post report. During Burns’ visit in June, three Ukrainian officials said they wanted to recapture a significant area by the fall and then move artillery and missile systems to the Crimean border. The Ukrainian peninsula was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014 and has been under Russian occupation ever since.

They also want to advance further into Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine. If successful, negotiations with Moscow will open for the first time since the breakdown of negotiations in March last year. By agreeing not to take Crimea by force, Kiev would require Russia to accept whatever security guarantees Ukraine can get from the West, Ukrainian officials told The Washington Post.

Expert: Then Ukraine could “make a breakthrough”

According to the US media, experts see Ukraine’s goals as ambitious but realistic. “It is possible that they can cut off the land bridge to Crimea by taking the site or bringing it within range of HIMARS and other artillery, but a lot depends on how it goes,” said Rob Lee, a US military analyst. « Foreign Policy Research Institute », « Washington Post ».

If the Ukrainian military manages to inflict enough casualties on the Russian side and limit possible ammunition supplies or reinforcements, they could “weaken Moscow’s defenses enough to effect a breakthrough,” Lee said.

The U.S. military says Ukraine’s counteroffensive is progressing slower than predicted. However, she is making steady progress, Chief of Staff Mark Milley said Friday at the National Press Club. The slow pace is not surprising to him, as the advance takes place “through very difficult minefields and so on”.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyj announced on Saturday that progress had been made “in all directions”. This information cannot be independently verified. (t-online/mom)