“Our goal is to end the war!” The Russian president told the media on Thursday. But Vladimir Putin (70) only wants a quick end to the war in Ukraine if Russia wins. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) analyzes that the Russian president is trying to justify the costly war effort with his latest statements to his own people and absolve himself of responsibility for a protracted war.
The Russian army has had no significant successes in Ukraine since the beginning of July. Now the Kremlin has identified two scapegoats responsible for the war in Ukraine.
Gerasimov and Zelensky will serve as scapegoats
Putin shifts the main responsibility to his chief of staff, Valeri Gerasimov (67). By mid-December, he had disappeared from the scene for nearly ten months. Now he has resurfaced and is making a slew of long-defunct claims.
“Neo-Nazi ideology” is growing in Ukraine and preparations have been made in Kiev for the reconquest of Donbass and Crimea in early 2022. According to the ISW, this is not the case. The high toll of blood has put parts of the Russian population in a bad mood. Gerasimov’s comments are intended to win back public support, the ISW notes.
Putin calls the invasion of Ukraine a war for the first time
The second scapegoat is Volodymyr Zelensky (44). The tone in the Kremlin is that the Ukrainian president is not giving in and thus prolonging the war. During his visit to the United States, Selenski just presented a 10-point peace plan.
On Thursday, Vladimir Putin described the invasion of Ukraine as a “war” for the first time. He wants to end the fighting in Ukraine as soon as possible. At the same time, during a televised press conference after a government meeting, he noted that Russia would not step up the pace of the invasion because it would result in “unjustified casualties”.
Until now, the autocrat had always described the invasion of Ukraine as a “special military operation”. Using the word “war” in connection with the invasion of Ukraine is a criminal offense in Russia. Putin’s talk of a ‘war’ for once has caused quite a stir. The district deputy of St. Petersburg and Putin critic Nikita Juferev (34) promptly filed a lawsuit against Putin. (nad)