President Donald Trump has denounced Russian President Vladimir Putin after a Russian missile attack on Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, killing at least 12 people and wounding dozens.
Posting Thursday on his true social platform, Trump wrote that the attacks were “not necessary” and “very” badly timed.
“Vladimir, stop! 5,000 soldiers are almost dying each week,” Post said.
Trump’s direct appeal to Putin came after Ukrainian President Voldimi Zelensky urged his allies to put more pressure on Russia to stop the war that began more than three years ago.
At a press conference with South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, Zelensky said: “We don’t see the US putting strong pressure on Russia as part of the peace push. We believe that we can put a lot of pressure on Russia and bring the sides closer.”
Trump said his administration has applied “a lot of pressure” to Russia and has repeatedly complained about the attack.
However, he said that great progress was made in peace negotiations and that the Kremlin had made “a rather big concessions” by becoming open to “stop the war and stopping the entire country.”
“The last few days will be very important. The meeting is now taking place,” Trump said. “I think we’re going to make a deal… I think we’re getting very close.”
In a report from Washington, D.C., Al Jazeera’s Mika Hannah said that Trump’s true society message was a rare attempt to put pressure on Putin.
“But once again, Trump uses ‘Vladimir’ – which could be interpreted as an almost loving term – again showing the nature of his relationship with Putin, in contrast to the nature of his relationship with Ukrainian leaders,” he said.
“Trump and his administration have recently put immense pressure on Ukrainian leaders in a few weeks, and essentially say they have to give up their territory to achieve a peace deal,” Hannah pointed out.
“He doesn’t put the same pressure on Russian leaders, so it appears to be biased when the US tries to mediate peace between the countries it fights,” he added.
George Barros, an analyst at the US-based War Institute, believes there are many different ways to put great pressure on Putin if the US chooses to do so.
“There’s something the US can do to make *stop Vladimir* *. Putin has a vulnerability that we have overlooked or have chosen not to take advantage of,” Baros said in a social media post.
“Putin is banking in the US, which has removed Russia from the hook despite Russia’s own instability,” he added.
“A door where windows break and falls out of the hinge”
The Ukrainian forces said Russia used at least 11 Iskander ballistic missiles, 55 cruise missiles of several types, and four guided bombs fired from tactical aircraft in an attack on Kiev on Thursday.
It also said that at least 145 Iranian-designed different types of simulator drones were also involved, with projectiles being fired from Briansk, Kursk, Belgorod and other Russian regions.
Olena Davydiuk, a 33-year-old Kyiv lawyer, told AFP news agency that windows had been smashed and she saw a door “falling out of the hinge” during the barrage of hell.
“People were being pulled out of the rooftop rub. They said there were dead people there too,” she added.
The Ukrainian army said seven ballistic missiles, 37 cruise missiles, all guided bombs and 64 drones were intercepted, and 68 drone simulators fell undamaged.
The Russian Ministry of Defense said, “The strike goal has been achieved. All objects have been hit.”
The ministry said Russian military operations at the frontlines of the war, including eastern Ukraine, have killed hundreds of Ukrainian service members and destroyed dozens of tanks and armored vehicles in the past day.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also denounced the Ukrainian president for “wrecking” diplomacy aimed at reaching a peace deal in a conversation proposed by the Trump administration regarding the potential recognition of Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova told reporters that Zelensky is not capable of negotiating the deal, adding that the ongoing transfer of EU weapons to Ukraine will encourage more conflict.
Europe also criticizes Putin
However, Kaja Karas, the head of foreign policy for the European Union, wrote in a post in X that Moscow’s attack on Ukraine is not a pursuit of peace, but a “ock ha ha.”
“The real obstacle is not Ukraine, but Russia, where the purpose of that war has not changed,” she said.
French President Emmanuel Macron also said that he needs to “lie” about Putin’s desire for peace in Ukraine as he continues to raid the country.
“The thing to do is for Putin to eventually stop lying,” Macron said during a visit to Madagascar on Thursday.
The attack on Kiev on Thursday has already inscribed efforts by Russia and Ukraine to agree to a halt of the fight, Macron said Putin is the only person in support of the US proposal and the European-backed ceasefire proposal.
“In Ukraine, they’re just looking for a single answer. Does Putin agree to an unconditional ceasefire?” Macron said.
“If President Putin says yes, the weapons will be silent tomorrow. Life will be saved. ”
Source link
