Recently, Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance hinted in a podcast interview what Donald Trump’s plan to end the Ukraine war might look like. Among other things, he said that it could include a demilitarized zone, which raises fears that Ukraine would have to give up the territories already conquered by Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly stressed that the cession of Ukrainian territories is out of the question. And surveys among Ukrainians show a similar mood. The Washington Post has now asked around in the Donbass why this is not an option for many people there (Source here).
Veronika, a military medic, says: “Nobody here would support that – this country is now stained with our blood.” The 23-year-old comes from Donetsk and fled from there with her family when the Russians invaded.
Pasha, 34, a former miner from Pokrovsk who now works as a drone commander, told the newspaper that the loss of Donbass would be “catastrophic,” and there is no guarantee that this is the end. “Russia is a country with imperialist ambitions, they will not stop.” And 38-year-old Natalia Bredova from Sloviansk said: “Too many men have died for this – it is too late to talk about negotiations. They are the light of our nation. We must keep fighting.”
There has also been some change in the mood, writes the Washington Post. While some Ukrainians once felt that Donbass was a separate part of the country that could be disposed of, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine seems to have changed that feeling among many, even in the west of the country.
“In 2014 it was the war in Donbass, now it is the war in Ukraine,” said MP Yegor Firsov“If there used to be a discussion about whether we need the Donbass, whether we can give it up, now there is no such discussion. These are all our territories – and we claim them all.”
The most important news of the day:
- According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine does not have enough weapons to fully equip its troops. “We would need to equip 14 brigades, but we can only equip four brigades with the weapons delivered so far,” Zelensky said in an interview with a US journalist, parts of which were published in Ukrainian media. More here.
- Following the alleged assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has condemned any “political violence.” He wrote on Monday in the online service X: “Political violence has no place anywhere in the world.” More here.
- Russia says it has recaptured some areas in its border region of Kursk from invading Ukrainian troops. The armed forces have regained control of the villages of Uspenovka and Borki, the Defense Ministry said, according to the state news agency RIA. More in the news blog.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the army to be increased by 180,000 to 1.5 million soldiers. In a decree published on the Kremlin’s website, Putin announced that the total strength of the armed forces would be increased to 2.38 million men – of which 1.5 million would be active soldiers.
- After 32 years, Doctors Without Borders has to end its work in Russia. The Russian Ministry of Justice has communicated the decision that the organization’s branch there will be removed from the register of representative offices of foreign non-governmental organizations, the aid organization said.
- Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha invited the United Nations (UN) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Monday to inspect the situation in Kursk. “Ukraine is ready to demonstrate its respect for international humanitarian law,” Sybiha said on the online service X.
- According to Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, the West should not take Russian nuclear threats seriously. The politician said this in an interview with the Ukrainian online newspaper European Pravda with regard to the restrictions on the use of Western weapons by Ukraine.
- According to official reports, eight people were injured in the shelling of the western Russian city of Belgorod on the border with Ukraine. “One of the injured is in critical condition, the others have sustained moderate injuries,” wrote Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov on his Telegram channel.
- The Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, speaks out against the proposal to set up an international contact group to mediate between Kyiv and MoscowHe is more in favour of a new peace conference, as he told the editorial network Germany.
- Ukraine says it has largely repelled a massive Russian drone attack during the night. The Ukrainian Air Force reports that 53 of 56 Russian drones were shot down across ten regions.
