Russian President Vladimir Putin is preparing his country for the option of the war in Ukraine lasting a decade, a United States-based think tank said.
More than two years after Putin’s war introduced in February 2022 began, Moscow is raising the prospect of peace talks with Ukraine, it is not easy for the war-torn country to cede territory occupied by Russian forces.
In its most recent investigation into the clashes in Ukraine on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) focused on an interview given by Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president and minister, to the newspaper Argumenty I Fakty, as well as the reception of his statements in pro-Kremlin media.
In the interview published Tuesday night, Medvedev, now vice president of the Russian Security Council, stated that “it is not in vain” that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed hope that Ukraine could join the military alliance. in the next 10 years. Training
“That is true, never,” Medvedev said, adding that until 2034, “none of the leaders of the existing NATO countries will simply be in their posts, and some may not even be in this world. “
“It is quite imaginable that the country indicated 404 does not exist either,” he said.
“Country 404” is a “derogatory use of computer error code 404 intended to recommend that Ukraine is a genuine state,” the ISW said.
“Russian state media have editorialized comments through the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, claiming that he had said that the Ukrainian state would no longer exist until 2034, which is most likely due to the Kremlin’s efforts to prepare the Russian public. a long war in Ukraine, while promising that Russia will achieve its goal of destroying the Ukrainian state within a decade,” the think tank said.
Although Medvedev did not explicitly state that Ukraine would cease to exist until 2034, ISW noted, several media outlets, “including the Kremlin news service TASS,” ran headlines such as “Medvedev admitted Ukraine will no longer exist in 2034” and “Medvedev predicted Ukraine’s demise until 2034. “
Newsweek reached out to the foreign ministries of Russia and Ukraine via email.
The ISW said Medvedev’s suggestion that Russia would “destroy Ukraine” by 2034 is “a promise to the Russian public that Russia will win the war and achieve its goal of destroying the Ukrainian state within a decade. “
This narrative “sets out cautious data situations and societal expectations for a war that will last a decade, but end with Russia’s desired ‘victory,'” the think tank said.
It also undermines recent attempts by Kremlin officials to make it transparent that Russia is open to holding peace negotiations with Ukraine to end the war, and “underlines that the ultimate goal the Kremlin needs for the war is the total destruction of the Ukrainian state”. and the people. “
The Kremlin has detailed some situations that Russia considers non-negotiable, adding that Ukraine will have to accept the annexation in September 2022 of four of its regions (Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia) after referendums called by Putin and considered illegal. through the foreign community.
On June 14, Putin said Ukraine will also have to give up any plans to join the NATO military alliance.
Ukraine has said that any peace deal will have to invalidate the annexations of its territory in September 2022, as well as that of the Crimean peninsula, claimed through Putin in 2014.
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Isabel van Brugen is a Newsweek journalist founded in Kuala Lumpur. It focuses on the war between Russia and Ukraine. Isabel joined Newsweek in 2021 and in the past had worked with media outlets such as Daily Express, The Times, Harper’s BAZAAR, and Grazia. She holds a Master’s degree in News Journalism from the City of London, University of London and a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism in Russian from Queen Mary, University of London. Languages: English, Russian
You can contact Isabel by emailing i. vanbrugen@newsweek. com or following her on X @isabelvanbrugen
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