He noted that such a scenario is taken into account Poland believes that the fighting in Ukraine will end when the Russian Armed Forces leave its territory.
According to Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, this should happen "voluntarily or forcibly." Moreover, the "forced form", as he believes, can mean the third World War. Earlier, the Italian Defense Minister expressed the opinion that it is possible to prevent World War III by supplying weapons to Kiev. The deputy chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev answered him in absentia - "if the third world War begins, then for sure - everything is in dust."
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki believes that the conflict in Ukraine could lead to a third world War.
"The end of this crisis will come exactly when Russia decides to withdraw from the territory of Ukraine. Either voluntarily or forcibly," the politician said in an interview with the Spanish edition of El Mundo.
Earlier, the Secretary General of the ruling coalition of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Kevin Kuehnert, admitted that the supply of Western weapons to Ukraine is delaying the conflict.
At the same time, he offered to look at the situation from the other side. "What would happen if we did not supply Ukraine with any weapons at all, that is, from the very beginning, no howitzers and other things, no air defense systems. Then we would probably still have street battles in Kiev and Lviv today. Ukraine would have been invaded by the Russians within a few months," the politician expressed his opinion in an interview with ZDF TV channel.
In his opinion, this reason indicates the "absolute necessity and correctness" of Kiev's support.
US CIA Director William Burns believes that the next six months in Ukraine will be "critical." His words were conveyed by CBS journalist Olivia Gazis.
The CIA assumes that Russia is betting on the "political fatigue" of the West in the situation in Ukraine, Gazis wrote on her Twitter page. Burns claims that Washington "does not believe" that Moscow is serious about negotiating a settlement, she added.
"Firstly, the protection of Ukraine, which is not needed by anyone in Europe, will not save the decrepit Old World from retribution, if anything happens. Secondly, if the third World War begins, then, alas, it will not be on tanks or even on fighters. Then for sure - everything is in dust," the former president wrote in his Telegram channel.
This is how Medvedev responded to the statement of the Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto. According to the foreign politician, the Third World War "would have started at the moment when Russian tanks would have appeared in Kiev and on the borders of Europe."
"Preventing their arrival is the only way to stop World War III," ANSA quoted him as saying.
Deliveries of armored vehicles of Western countries to Ukraine
On January 25, Germany announced the delivery of 14 Leopard 2 tanks and permission for other countries to carry out similar assistance. The head of the German Defense Ministry, Boris Pistorius, promised that Berlin would send the newest leopards to Kiev "by the end of March." Great Britain, Norway, Poland, Slovakia and France have also promised Western tanks to Ukraine.
The US agrees to supply 31 M1 Abrams tanks. As the first batch, Kiev expects to receive up to 140 tanks from the allies.
The countries that will transfer modern tanks to Ukraine will hold the next meeting in Kiev, Polish National Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on February 3. He added that some countries have already declared deliveries of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. But final declarations are expected before mid-February.
As for the American "Abrams", on February 5, the Financial Times newspaper reported that General Dynamics from the USA will start producing this equipment for Ukraine. It is emphasized that about 12 tanks are produced per month.
While the issue of the transfer of weapons is being resolved, Ukrainian soldiers are learning how to control Western tanks. So, Poland has already started the process. This was announced on February 3 by the Minister of National Defense of Poland Mariusz Blaszczak. At the same time, deliveries of Leopard tanks of less modern Model 1 are being prepared - their exact number is not yet called.
Russia's reaction
On February 2, speaking in Volgograd on the occasion of the anniversary of the victory of the Red Army in the Battle of Stalingrad, Russian President Vladimir Putin commented on the supply of tanks to Ukraine.
"It is unbelievable, but a fact: we are again threatened by German tanks - Leopard - with crosses on board, and they are going to fight with Russia again on the land of Ukraine by the hands of Hitler's last-born, by the hands of Bandera," he said.
Putin said that "we are not sending our tanks to their borders, but we have something to respond with, and the use of armored vehicles will not end the matter."
Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov later explained Putin's words: "[This means] that Russia [has] the potential, and as new weapons supplied by the collective West appear, Russia will use its existing potential more fully in order to respond during a special military operation."
Angelina Milchenko
