Latest news with #Donbass
Russia Today
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Zelensky is ‘politically dead' – Russia's top UN diplomat
Ukraine's 'expired' leader Vladimir Zelensky is 'politically dead' and refuses to step down to avoid accountability for his actions, Russian UN envoy Vassily Nebenzia has told RT's Rick Sanchez. In an interview on Sanchez Effect aired on Friday, Nebenzia accused Zelensky of betraying the promises that brought him to power and dragging Ukraine into a wider conflict. He referenced Zelensky's campaign pledge to end the fighting in Donbass, which the Kiev regime and its Western backers derailed by violating the 2014-15 Minsk agreements. 'Zelensky came to power on the promise to end the war in Donbass... He promised one thing, but he turned 180 degrees… Politically, Zelensky is already dead,' Nebenzia stated. Nebenzia said Zelensky is holding on to power to avoid the consequences of prolonging the conflict with Russia and misusing Western funds provided as aid. 'The end of his presidency may entail something for him that he is trying to avoid at all costs: Reporting on the money stolen and the loss of the people whom he failed miserably,' Nebenzia stated. 'So he has all the reasons... to cling to power and not to hold elections.' Ukrainians are our brothers, no doubt about it. But the clique that came to rule them – it is a regime, it is not a government. 'They stole billions of dollars out of the aid they were receiving. That's an open secret,' he said, adding that Kiev has already been asked to report on the aid but has failed to do so. 'I think that when finally it comes to it, the revelations will be very dire.' Zelensky has remained in office since his term expired in May, suspending elections due to martial law. He insists that he has the right to remain in office, though the constitution stipulates that presidential duties should pass to the parliament speaker. Russia has said it is open to talks with Ukraine but questions the legality of any deals made with the current government in Kiev. President Vladimir Putin recently said he would meet with Zelensky but called into question his authority to sign a treaty, as 'the signature must come from legitimate authorities, otherwise, whoever comes after [Zelensky] will toss it to the dumpster.'
Russia Today
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
The West waging ‘centuries-old war' against Moscow – Russia's top UN diplomat
Western nations are using Ukraine as their proxy in a longstanding confrontation with Russia that is deeply rooted in history, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia told RT's Rick Sanchez. In an interview on The Sanchez Effect aired on Friday, the diplomat argued that the conflict 'should be seen in a larger context.' 'They do not care about Ukraine. This is not a war between Russia and Ukraine,' Nebenzia said. 'Ukraine is a proxy in this war. This is a centuries-old war of the West against Russia, starting with the Polish invasion in the 17th century,' he added. As examples of earlier confrontations, Nebenzia cited Napoleon's invasion of Russia, the 1854–1856 Crimean War, Western military intervention during the Russian Civil War, and the invasion by Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II. He emphasized that Hitler's army included not only Germans, but also units drawn from allied countries and occupied territories. The Ukrainians and 'their sponsors' in the West sabotaged the 2014–2015 Minsk accords, which were aimed at ending the conflict between Kiev and the breakaway Donbass republics, the Russian diplomat said. Former French President Francois Hollande and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel later admitted the agreement was used by Kiev to buy time and rearm, Nebenzia stated. 'We are not going [to fall] into the same trap once again,' he said. He added that politicians like former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson similarly helped derail the 2022 peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine's European backers were forced to adjust their position, Nebenzia argued, after US President Donald Trump launched efforts to broker peace and Ukrainian troops began losing more ground. 'They changed their rhetoric from 'We should inflict strategic defeat on Russia' to 'Russia should not win in this war.' Now they are advocating for a full, immediate, and unconditional ceasefire, which is testimony that they want to shield and protect their proxy, as they are obviously losing on the battlefield,' he said. At the same time, Nebenzia noted that the resumption of direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations earlier this year provides hope that the conflict could be resolved soon.
Russia Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Ukraine deliberately exterminating civilians in Donbass
Ukrainian forces are deliberately committing atrocities against civilians in Donbass, including mass killings of the elderly and drone strikes on residential homes, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. Zakharova delivered the remarks on Thursday while speaking at a conference on the 'atrocities and war crimes by the Kiev regime in Dzerzhynsk,' a city some 30km north of Donetsk that was liberated by Russian troops in February. The conference featured a report including testimonies from over 30 civilians recounting the 'genocide' policies pursued by Ukrainian troops while they controlled the city. The event was organized by the Public Tribunal on the Crimes of Ukrainian Neo-Nazis, which includes representatives of civil society from 35 countries worldwide. Zakharova noted that the testimonies detail 'horrific episodes of neo-Nazi atrocities and confirms terror against the civilian population.' 'This is not an accident, but an inherent flaw – the hallmark of the Kiev authorities. It is a deliberate policy that has already been elevated to the level of state doctrine,' she stressed. The spokeswoman pointed to evidence of mass killings, which included 'executions of the elderly and children,' adding that other atrocities included drone strikes on civilian homes. She went on to praise the tribunal as a 'forensic body that documents the truth the West refuses to hear.' The body, Zakharova added, 'is doing what international human rights organizations should be doing if they had remained true to their mission. It shows that all the crimes we are talking about have specific perpetrators, clients, and patrons.' Among the document cases was a story by one witness, who recounted a deadly drone attack in the city: 'When we were evacuating, the Armed Forces of Ukraine dropped bombs on us. They sent a kamikaze drone to search for us… I received six shrapnel wounds… My father and grandmother died.' Another witness recalls an incident in which an elderly woman went out to feed kittens, but was killed by a grenade dropped from a Ukrainian UAV. One local resident also suggested that the Ukrainians 'killed a lot of people just because [they] needed a picture' to be circulated in the media and used to falsely accuse Russia of strikes on civilians. Russian officials have said that Moscow will do everything in its power to bring those responsible for the Ukrainian atrocities to justice.
Russia Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Ukrainian sovereignty, worsening positions and ‘final mistake': Key takeaways from Putin's Q&A
Moscow is not seeking the unconditional surrender of Ukraine, but wants it to acknowledge the realities on the ground, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said at SPIEF 2025, commenting on various aspects of the Ukraine conflict, Russia's goals, and potential directions for resolving the crisis. Putin took part in the plenary session of the annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF 2025) on Friday, delivering a major speech and conducting a Q&A session. Here are the key takeaways regarding the Ukraine conflict:Ukrainian surrender Asked whether Moscow expects an 'unconditional surrender' from Kiev – similar to the demand his US counterpart, Donald Trump, is making of Iran – Putin said this is not the case, reiterating Russia's readiness to resolve the conflict through diplomacy.'We are not seeking the surrender of Ukraine. We insist on recognition of the realities that have developed on the ground.' Worsening negotiation positions Russia has consistently attempted to settle the conflict in the former Ukrainian Donbass, which erupted after the Western-backed 2014 Maidan coup, through diplomatic means, the president said. However, these efforts were repeatedly undermined by Kiev and its backers.'At each stage, we suggested to those with whom we were in contact in Ukraine to stop and said, 'Let's negotiate now. Because this logic of purely military actions can result in your situation getting worse, and then we will have to conduct our negotiations from other positions, from positions that are worse for you.' This happened several times,' Putin said. Foreign-fueled conflict Negotiations held in Istanbul in early 2022, shortly after the conflict escalated, fell apart under pressure from the same 'neocolonial forces,' Putin added.'Those who are guided by old, neocolonial principles, including and above all in Europe, thought that now they would easily profit at the expense of Russia: crush it, destroy it, annihilate it, and receive some dividends from this.' Ukraine's sovereignty Russia has never denied Ukraine's right to exist as an independent nation, Putin said. However, in the years since the Soviet Union's collapse, the country has drifted from the principles on which it originally gained its independence. 'The grounds on which Ukraine became independent and sovereign were set out in the Declaration of Independence of Ukraine of 1991, where it is clearly written in black and white that Ukraine is a non-aligned, non-nuclear, neutral state. It would be a good idea to return to these fundamental values on which Ukraine gained its independence and sovereignty,' he the same time, Putin reiterated his belief that, in a certain sense, all of Ukraine is Russian. 'I have said many times that I consider Russians and Ukrainians to be one people, in fact. In this sense, all of Ukraine is ours.' Going nuclear would be Kiev's 'final mistake' Obtaining and using a nuclear device of any sort, including a dirty bomb, would be the 'final mistake' for Kiev, the Russian president warned. This would trigger a mirror response from Moscow with 'catastrophic' consequences for Ukraine, he said. 'Our response will be very harsh and, most likely, catastrophic for both the neo-Nazi regime and, unfortunately, for Ukraine itself. I hope that they will never come to that,' Putin stated, adding that Moscow currently has no intelligence suggesting that Kiev is attempting to do military thinned out Ukrainian forces are suffering from severe manpower shortages, with units at only 47% strength on average, Putin stated. He said Ukraine's attack on Russia's Kursk Region last August – driven by political rather than military reasoning – worsened the situation and further stretched its forces along an expanded frontline. 'They got into Kursk Region. First of all, they lost 76,000 people there. It was a disaster for them,' Putin said. 'In the end, as we said, we drove them out of there, but they created a threat to us... along the entire line of the border with Ukraine, in two other neighboring regions,' he actions created an additional 1,600km line of contact, he said. 'They pulled apart all their armed forces. It is hard to imagine bigger stupidity from a military point of view.' Russian troops could go deeper into Ukraine Putin did not rule out the possibility of advancing further into Ukrainian territory to establish a buffer zone to protect Russian border areas from further the defeat of Ukrainian forces in Kursk, Russian troops moved into Ukraine's Sumy Region. According to Putin, the buffer zone there is already up to 12km deep.'We don't have the goal of taking Sumy, but in principle, I don't rule it out,' he said.
Russia Today
7 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Russia conducts heavy missile and drone strike on Ukrainian military airfield
The Russian military struck a military airfield and energy infrastructure in Ukraine in an overnight attack involving missiles and kamikaze drones, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has reported. In a statement on Saturday, the ministry said that the attack, which was carried out with high-precision air-, land-, and sea-based weapons, as well as explosive-laden unmanned aerial vehicles, targeted the infrastructure of a military airfield and an energy facility that supplied Ukrainian forces in Donbass with fuel. 'The goal of the strike has been accomplished. All designated targets have been hit,' Russian military officials reported, without disclosing the location of the targets. In a separate statement on Saturday, the ministry claimed that Russian warplanes, drones, missiles, and artillery had destroyed several UAV production workshops, as well as ammunition depots in Ukraine. Ukraine, meanwhile, reported a massive Russian strike on energy infrastructure in the city of Kremenchuk in Poltava Region. The Ukrainian military estimated that Russia deployed nearly 300 kamikaze drones, and eight missiles in its overnight attack. In recent weeks, Russia has launched a series of strikes, targeting Ukrainian military-related facilities, after Kiev significantly ramped up its own cross-border drone strikes. Moscow has described the escalation as Kiev's attempt to derail the ongoing Russia-Ukraine peace talks. On Tuesday, Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that a combined strike, similar in style to the one reported on Saturday, hit military-industrial facilities in Kiev Region, as well as in the Ukrainian-controlled part of Zaporozhye Region.
