With both Ukraine and Russia investing heavily in the war, it's unlikely there will be any negotiations to end the conflict or agree to a cease-fire Defense analysts argue that neither side would want to go into negotiations unless they're in a position of strength and able to dictate terms Former US Ambassador to NATO Kurt Volker told CNBC he believes American and EU aid packages for Ukraine will be approved come January, saying he believed this funding would tide Ukraine over for another year, militarily Volker said that aid packages must include more advanced weaponry for Ukraine, however, like F-16 fighter jets which have been pledged by Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands Some sanctions will take weeks, even months to bite, but some are now hitting Russia's currency, stocks, the wealth of the rich oligarchs and sadly the lives of the poorest We saw some scenes of celebration in areas of eastern Ukraine which have been controlled by Russian-backed separatists since 2014
And even though the US imports relatively little oil from Russia, oil prices are set by the global market, meaning local prices could rise anyway For one, Russia could choose to cut off or limit oil and gas exports to Europe as retaliation for sanctions Nearly 40 of the natural gas used by the European Union comes from Russia — and no European country imports more than Germany, a key ally of the United States Because there will be thousands of families across this country tonight, who have soldier relatives in Russia as prisoners of war, who are now waiting - and worrying They quoted the Defence Ministry in Moscow claiming that dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war had been on board the flight, on their way to a prisoner exchange There are shooting wars and there are information wars and countries that are fighting do battle on both fronts
Russia's invasion in Georgia 14 years ago offers a rough analogy for a similar operation in Ukraine, he said In 2008, Russia launched a major military offensive to prevent the Georgian government from re-establishing control over the regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and the operation succeeded in imposing a political outcome in line with Moscow's interests With Russia's formidable air and naval power, any offensive would most likely feature bombing raids, missile strikes and cyberattacks that could devastate Ukraine's military infrastructure, disrupt communications and pin down ground troops
The Institute for the Study of War thinktank says the costs of allowing Russia to win in Ukraine are "higher than most people imagine", as US resolve - particularly among Republicans - possibly wavers over providing more military aid to Kyiv https//euronewstopcouk/where-is-turkey-in-relation-to-ukrainehtml as the United States retained the diplomatic properties of the three Baltic states in Washington, DC, after they had been annexed by the Soviet Union during World War II, the West can put itself on the side of decency and dignity in this conflict All too often countries defeat themselves over time by launching and then winning the wrong wars
But Russia's military doctrine prescribes achieving surprise and shock; maximum use of all lethal force available; rapid tempo of operations; and quick achievement of objectives If the destruction of cities like Mariupolnbsp;is anything to go by, Russia doesn't seem intent on preserving the areas it's fighting to take control of Russia has one of the biggest nuclear arsenals in the world, and is estimated to have thousands of nuclear warheads in its stockpile, assigned for both long-range strategic launchers and shorter-range tactical nuclear forces "You could imagine a situation where [Putin] uses a nuclear weapon in order to force NATO into the conflict," Professor Fruehling said Many experts have tended to agree it's unlikely Mr Putin will resort to using nuclear weapons
After liberating a handful of villages in the summer, Ukrainian and Russian forces have been caught in largely attritional battles, with neither side making significant gains "Russia can win the war, or the Ukrainians can win the war And, as you're seeing things now, if you really think about it, what has been achieved this year Very little has been achieved by Russia, and you can say the same thing for the Ukrainians," he said As Russia invaded Ukraine, a first tranche of sanctions came into force in one capital after another They were welcomed by Ukrainians but mocked too as simply not sufficient Some evacuees from this region told BBC colleagues of their happiness that Russia recognised Donetsk and Luhansk
"Our heroic rescuers, those who are always the first to arrive at the sites of enemy shelling, despite all the difficulties, continue their very important work for the sake of saving people," Zelenskyy said Russia and Ukraine both deny deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure in the war The European Commission is looking into ways of allowing eastern EU member states to restrict farm imports from Ukraine as it extends trade liberalisation with Kyiv for a further year to June 2025 Asked about the likelihood of Putin's visit to Turkey before the presidential elections, Peskov said that it was possible Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to North Korea is unlikely to take place before the presidential election in March, the Kremlin's press secretary said Tuesday