Russia is reinforcing troops on various front sectors

Kyiv, New York Shortly before the anniversary of the Russian troops’ attack on Ukraine, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned against an escalation of the conflict and the use of nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, Russia’s UN ambassador accused Germany and the West in the Ukraine conflict of motives similar to those in World War II. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy bid farewell to a class of young officers who have completed their training and are ready to go to war.

On the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the UN General Assembly is due to pass a resolution on Thursday calling for peace and Moscow’s withdrawal. Russian President Vladimir Putin started the war on February 24, 2022.

UN General Assembly votes on Ukraine resolution

Before leaving for the session of the UN General Assembly, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock campaigned on Thursday for approval of the United Nations resolution for an end to the Russian war of aggression, which was tabled by more than 50 countries. “The peace plan is on the table in New York, it’s the charter of the United Nations,” said the Green politician.

Baerbock wants to give a speech in front of the General Assembly in New York in the late afternoon German time. The vote on the resolution is scheduled for late evening (CET) after dozens of speeches by high-level speakers.

Guterres warns of nuclear weapons

“Over the past year, not only have we seen increasing suffering and devastation, it’s also becoming increasingly clear how much worse things could get,” Guterres said on Wednesday at the opening of the special session of the UN General Assembly to mark the anniversary of the start of the war.

The possible consequences of a conflict spiral are a clear and present danger. “We have since heard implicit threats to use nuclear weapons. The so-called tactical use of nuclear weapons is absolutely unacceptable.” It is high time to step back from the abyss.

CDU leader Friedrich Merz also warned of further conflicts that could lead to nuclear escalation. “The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, as terrible as it rightly seems to us today, could still turn out to be the ‘minor’ problem,” writes the CDU chairman in a guest article for the Handelsblatt.

Russia: “German tanks will kill Russians again”

Speaking at the UN General Assembly special session, Russia’s Ambassador to the UN Vasily Nebensia said: “This is a war which, as it did 80 years ago, involves a treacherous and powerful enemy who wants to take over our country and subjugate us.”

The West wants to achieve the end of Russia. “The goal now is to arm Ukraine and thereby inflict a strategic defeat on my country, dismembering and destroying it,” said Nebensia. “The German tanks will kill Russians again.”

Zelensky sends graduates of military academies off to war

Zelensky on Wednesday bid farewell to the graduates of the military academies in Lviv and Odessa. “This is a special mission – to receive military training now and to know that tomorrow this training will be needed directly on the battlefield to defend the state and to lead soldiers and units,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address. No information was given about the number of young officers.

Kiev: Russia reinforces troops on various front sectors

According to Kiev’s findings, the Russian army is strengthening its troops on various front sectors. The Ukrainian general staff announced on Wednesday that this suggests that new attacks are imminent.

The Russian armed forces concentrated their main efforts “on offensive operations in the Kupyansk, Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Shakhtarsk directions,” according to the statement from the Ukrainian military leadership. Heavy fighting continues, especially around Bachmut.

Zoff over ammunition: Wagner boss criticizes Russia’s military leadership

In Russia, tensions between the military leadership and Wagner’s private army intensified. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin published an interview on Telegram on Wednesday with well-known Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, in which he complained about the Russian military’s lack of equipment for his fighters.

“They didn’t give us ammunition and they don’t give us any now,” reads the audio file. Prigozhin’s troops are notorious for their particularly brutal tactics, in which high losses in their own ranks are accepted.

Kuleba on Chinese peace proposal: The devil is in the details

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba expressed reservations about a possible Chinese push for peace. While he knows key elements of a proposal prepared by Beijing, he needs to see the entire document to get an idea. “The devil is in the details,” Kuleba said on Wednesday in New York.

This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:

Ukraine has its own peace plan, supported by many countries. Recently it became known that China is apparently preparing a twelve-point plan to calm the war, which is based on the principle of territorial integrity.

Expert: Ukrainian counter-offensive could turn the tide of war

According to military expert Carlo Masala, a Ukrainian counter-offensive could “definitely turn the tide” in the war. If the Ukrainians succeed in separating Russia’s southern front from the eastern one, it could enable them “to increase the pressure on Crimea to such an extent that Russia is about to lose the peninsula,” he told the newspapers Funke media group (Thursday).

What will be important on Thursday

Not only the session of the UN General Assembly in New York, but also the winter conference of parliamentarians from OSCE states in Vienna is marked by the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. Because Russian delegates are attending the meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Ukrainian and Lithuanian MPs decided to stay away from the meeting.

More: Don’t miss any developments in the Ukraine war – everything new in our news blog