Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky both delivered New Year’s Eve addresses to their countries, where they vowed to continue fighting as the war shows no sign of slowing down in 2023.
In his speech, Putin reiterated that he has no intention of leaving the areas Russian forces have captured and annexed, saying Russia is fighting to protect people “in the new regions of the Russian Federation.”
Putin took aim at the US and its European allies, saying the West “lied to us about peace while preparing for aggression,” likely referring to recent comments from former German Chancellor Angela Merkel. She said in December that the Minsk accords that were brokered by France and Germany and meant to end the Donbas war were really an effort to “give Ukraine time” to build up its military.
“Today, they no longer hesitate to openly admit it and to cynically use Ukraine and its people as a means to weaken and divide Russia. We have never allowed anyone to do this, and we will not allow it now,” Putin said.
The Russian leader concluded his speech by vowing that Russia would continue the fight. “We will only move forward, to fight for our families and for Russia, for the future of our only, beloved Motherland,” he said.
Zelensky said in his address that the previous 10 months of fighting has shown the world Ukraine doesn’t need to make compromises and hinted that he would never agree to Russian demands of neutrality. “This is the year when Ukraine changed the world. And the world discovered Ukraine. We were told to surrender. We chose a counterattack! We were told to make concessions and compromises. We are joining the European Union and NATO,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader said that he wished for victory, which according to Ukrainian officials, means kicking Russia out of the territory it has captured, including Crimea. While Ukraine did retake Kharkiv and Kherson city, territory has not changed hands much since then.
Fighting has been raging in eastern Ukraine, and the Russian Defense Ministry has been reporting heavy Ukrainian casualties, although the numbers are not confirmed. Russia has reinforced its positions in the east since ordering the mobilization of 300,000 fresh troops, but it’s not yet clear if they plan on launching a major offensive.
While the battle lines haven’t changed much, the situation for civilians across Ukraine is a dire one as Russia has been pounding Ukrainian energy infrastructure, leaving millions without power and heat for the winter. Russian missiles and drones continued to hit targets across the country on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
There just seem to be so many ways for this situation to get much worse…A lot depends on Russia and a lot depends on NATO.
I fear for humanity and civilization when the US realizes it can’t win. I keep seeing the last scene in Planet of the Apes” You bastards,you blew it all up”.
Pardon the pun: A blast from the past…
You should fear for Putin when he realizes he cannot win.
If this war goes nuclear, it will be because Desperate Putin, the guy you support, fires the fist One.
But you and your pro putin team here will blame it on the West as usual.
Well, Duh. The Russians have repeated ad nauseam to the blockheads in DC and NATO that there is no longer a choice as to whether they will keep fighting.
Something about never trusting anything the jackasses in the west say.
Interesting to see an article highlighting the statements of both leaders to continue the fight yet, the usual Russia supporters here rushed to criticize zelensky and the West only.
Putin is cool. Nothing negative to say about him.
Antiwar my rear end. This is straight up pro Putin war.
“I kill you!”
“No, I kill you!”
“you shut up because I kill you!”
“No, I kill you!”
…….. uncle sam, putin, kim jong, Xi, etc ….
A Freudian slip of sorts? Look at the invitation in this article: https://www.vox.com/world/2022/12/16/23507640/dc-party-invite-military-contractors-money-ukraine-russia-war-us
This picture is worth a thousand words.
So who’s going to supply Ukraine with weapons to defend their country? You, @Red Douglas, Putin?
How about the picture of Putin sending thousands of weapons and troops to kill Ukrainians? how about all the thousands of artillery rounds and kamakaze drones they have purchased from North Korea and Iran?
Do you have a problem with any of this?
Point of potential conflict, if this keeps up. “The Russian Federation” seems determined as hell. Putin in one tough MFer… The New Year is off with the usual big bag and not a whimper…
Anyone with the power, control and wealth of Putin has all the ingredients to be a tough Mfer but how cool if he would’ve used those attributions to promote peace and restraint from invading neighboring countries.
You just started the new year showing true colors by praising Putin.
And yes, calling someone a bad/tough Mfer these days is a praise/compliment.
Why not just an immediate cease-fire where the line is on the ground right now? A pull-back of 25-30km on each side of that line by both parties, to be overseen by U.N. observers and peacekeepers drawn from non-involved nations, while peace talks are started at some agreed upon neutral territory? At least the killing might end for a moment. Instead, on this site, I am sure to just see more calls for ‘total victory’ and/or ‘unconditional surrender’. I am rooting for the 30 km wide planet-killing asteroid heading our way that I so hope is out there. ;-/
Since this is an antiwar website, ahem, I would like to say: I wish for all of us, indeed The World, PEACE in our New Year!
Thank you for that wish. But I am forced by my skepticism to ask….is this site really antiwar? I see a lot of tribal boosterism and trolls getting paychecks somehow for being trolly. Not a lot of principled opposition to war. :-/
Being antiwar doesn’t mean you have to be impartial. After all, how would you have been impartial in the war between Nazis and Allies? No, being antiwar means understanding the root cause of a war so as to clearly see the way to peace. War propaganda operating with false flags and lies can never be antiwar.
Fair enough.
That is why I put the ‘ahem’…
Zelenskyy is correct in observing that Russia no longer has any military objectives in Ukraine. Russia is now deliberately attacking civilian infrastructure with the goal of making civilians suffer in the hope that this will drive Ukraine to surrender. This is a classic stage in asymmetric war when the stronger power doubles down on the civilian population after failing to achieve military victory against the elusive resistance. The invader loses the capacity to distinguish between the resistance combatants and civilians and eventually goes to war against the people and against the country and the land itself. It will end for Russia like it ended for the US in Vietnam and Afghanistan.The Russians will eventually get a government that recognizes the need to withdraw from Putin’s Ukrainian war.
Right on.