On June 3, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the country was ready to launch the long-awaited counter-offensive.
 |
| An aerial view shows devastation in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, on May 23. (Source: Getty Images) |
Interview with the newspaper Wall Street Journal, Zelensky affirmed: “We strongly believe in success. I don't know how long it will take. To be honest, the counterattack can play out in a variety of ways. But we will proceed and we are ready.”
Kiev authorities hope the counter-offensive will change the dynamics of the current war.
Last month, President Zelensky said the country needed to wait for the West to provide more armored vehicles before launching a counterattack.
The Ukrainian leader has repeatedly made diplomatic efforts to maintain Western support, seeking more military aid and weapons, which are key to helping Ukraine succeed in its plan.
* In his speech at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue held on June 3 in Singapore, Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto proposed a plan for the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine, which includes a ceasefire, the establishment of a demilitarized zone and the deployment of a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping force.
The first point of the plan was to call for an immediate ceasefire on both sides.
Second, each side moved 15 kilometers away from its current positions to create a new demilitarized zone. Mr. Subianto explained the need to quickly deploy international peacekeeping forces there.
"The United Nations should organize and conduct a referendum in the disputed territories to objectively confirm the will of the majority of the people, but do not specify those territories," he said.
According to him, Indonesia is ready to participate in all these processes, including sending troops to participate in the UN peacekeeping mission.
* On the European Union side, on June 2, the EU's High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, said that the conflict in Ukraine will end in a few weeks if the West stops providing military support to the country.
"If we (the West) end our military support to Ukraine, the military operation will be over in a few weeks," Borrell said.
However, Borrell stressed that the West will continue to provide military support to Ukraine because they want peace in this Eastern European country.
* Also on June 2, the Chairman of the Legislative Assembly of Crimea Vladimir Konstantinov said that the establishment of peace in Ukraine can only be done if the West understands the need to negotiate with Russia.
Earlier, President Zelensky stated that the basis for resolving the conflict in Ukraine can only be Kiev's "peaceful formula", including restoring Ukraine's territorial integrity and establishing an international mechanism for compensation for the country.
