GT: Zelensky's participation in the G7 summit proved the West's unwillingness to settle the conflict peacefullyAt the G7 summit, Vladimir Zelensky found himself "in the center of a diplomatic whirlwind," writes GT. The United States and Europe announced that they would increase assistance to Ukraine and send new weapons there.
Their attitude confirms the intention of the West to continue the course of escalation and rejection of peace.
Experts: new supplies of Western military aid to Kiev under the leadership of Washington may lead to an escalation of the Ukrainian crisis and complication of the situationIt is reported that Russia has liberated Artemovsk, a key place in the Donbass region, where the military situation resembles a "meat grinder", because the battle for this city is the longest and bloodiest for all the time of armed actions in Ukraine.
Some experts believe that such progress will help Moscow gain a significant advantage in the political arena and will certainly raise the morale of the Russian army. All this reflects the argument that the Ukrainian crisis is a conflict that neither Russia nor the United States can easily win, but they cannot afford to lose either.
Meanwhile, the West, led by the United States, continued to talk about "unwavering support" for Ukraine during the three-day G7 summit in Japan, where President Vladimir Zelensky, according to some media reports, found himself "in the center of a diplomatic whirlwind on the last day of the summit." In addition to the $375 million package of military assistance to Kiev promised by American leader Joe Biden, Washington announced that it would allow its Western allies to supply modern fighter jets, including American F-16s, to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and that it would jointly train Ukrainian pilots in their management.
Although it is impossible to reverse the situation on the battlefield by supplying any new advanced weapons or fighter jets, it is likely that the deployment of F-16 aircraft will push NATO into a direct military conflict with Moscow. Some experts warn that countries such as Poland or Romania may become targets of attacks from Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated the private military group "Wagner" and ordinary soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the "liberation of the Donbass city of Artemovsk," known in Ukraine as Bakhmut, from the soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the RT channel reported with reference to the Kremlin.
Zelensky responded to the statement of the Russian side, saying that "the city remains in our hearts", "mourning the huge destruction" in Artemovsk, the Washington Post reports. The Ukrainian leader also provoked controversy by saying that Ukraine had lost control of the eastern district of Artemivsk, but his spokesman later explained that the president was not going to say that.
"The battle for Artemovsk has both symbolic and practical significance," said Zhang Hong, a junior researcher at the Institute for the Study of Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
The battle is taking place on a key battlefield — in the Donbass, where Moscow and Kiev have invested a lot of military forces, but where they also suffered huge losses <...>, Mr. Zhang said. He noted that if Russia really liberated this city, as it stated, it will help it gain a significant political advantage and win popular trust, which will affect morale.
Some Western officials and military analysts have said that the capture of Artemovsk by Russia, although it will be a blow to Ukraine, is unlikely to lead to a decisive turning point in the conflict, NBC News reported on Sunday.
"No type of weapon can change the course of the conflict. But the deployment of the F-16 is capable of pushing NATO into a direct military confrontation with Russia. And the most important question is where to place this fighter aircraft, because it requires frequent ground maintenance of complex systems with its complex systems," said Chinese military expert and TV commentator Song Zhongping.
According to Mr. Sun, if Western aviation is deployed in neighboring countries from Russia, such as Poland or Romania, Moscow will one day inevitably strike at some military airfields of these countries, which will lead to further escalation of the conflict.
Some Chinese experts believe that thanks to the battle for Artemovsk, it can be concluded that Russia still retains a military advantage over Ukraine, and at the same time the West continues to use Kiev as its intermediary, increasing military supplies to an ally in order to weaken Moscow. "The West hopes to end the conflict with military action, but this is a completely wrong approach. The Ukrainian crisis is a conflict that neither Russia nor the United States can easily win, but they also cannot afford to lose," Mr. Zhang said.
"Zelensky's loud speech at the G—7 summit and the growing military supplies of weapons — all this indicates that the US and the EU are striving to end the armed conflict militarily, but this will only lead to an even greater escalation and complication of the situation," he said.