Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated Wednesday he seemed ahead to “peacetime” for his nation subsequent 12 months, whereas his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin warned the conflict might drag on.
“I consider that Ukrainians would be the most influential subsequent 12 months as effectively, however already in peacetime,” Zelenskyy stated, talking in a pre-recorded video after being named essentially the most highly effective particular person in Europe in the course of the annual POLITICO 28 rating gala.
“The Ukrainian navy, who protects us all on their battlefields, are No. 1,” he added, thanking “all our mates in Europe who assist us preserve stability” and “assist thousands and thousands stay via this horrible time.”
His remarks got here after, earlier on Wednesday, Putin stated he anticipated the “particular navy operation” — Moscow’s most popular time period for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine — to be “a protracted course of,” in a uncommon reference to the conflict’s potential length.
Putin additionally stated that the chance of nuclear conflict was mounting, in response to Reuters, however added: “We haven’t gone mad, we notice what nuclear weapons are.”
“We’ve these means in additional superior and fashionable type than some other nuclear nation … However we aren’t about to run world wide brandishing this weapon like a razor,” he stated.
Regardless of dealing with a number of navy setbacks in latest weeks — together with the liberation of Kherson, which had been occupied by the Russian military since late February — Putin stated he wouldn’t name up extra reservists.
In September and October, roughly 300,000 Russian military reservists had been mobilized following a name from the Russian president.
Final week, a senior Ukrainian official stated that between 10,000 and 13,000 Ukrainian troopers had been killed because the begin of Russia’s invasion on February 24.
In November, U.S. intelligence reported that “effectively over” 100,000 Russian troopers had been killed or injured within the conflict.
