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The United States has accused Russia of trying to “freeze” Ukraine into submission as the war moves toward its ninth month. The accusations come amidst Moscow’s push to move thousands of civilians out of the partially occupied Kherson region.
Following a meeting of the G7 foreign ministers in Germany Friday last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that as Russian President Vladimir Putin has failed to succeed on the battlefield, he has turned to try and “freeze” Ukraine into submission. On the same day of the G7 meeting, US National Security adviser Jake Sullivan traveled to Kyiv to reaffirm Washington’s support for Ukraine.
This comes amidst advances by Ukrainian troops on the ground, while Russia has repeatedly bombarded the country’s infrastructure with missiles and drones. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that Russia’s assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has left around 4.5 million people without power.
During Sullivan’s visit to Kyiv, he told a news conference that Ukraine is in need of air defense at this time amidst the barrage of missiles and explosive drones sent by Russia.
On the ground, Ukrainian forces are gearing up for an offensive in the southern territory to reclaim occupied areas. Moscow moved forward with moving civilians out of the partially-occupied territory of Kherson, and the Russian army said that around 5,000 residents were being evacuated from the region. Russia has already been urging civilians to leave Kherson since mid-October, pledging to turn its main city into a fortress.
Kyiv said the so-called evacuations of civilians by Moscow were like the Soviet-era “deportations” of its people.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, in what might be an indirect comment to Russia and the West, called on nations to prevent the threats or use of nuclear weapons in Europe and in Asia, during his meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Beijing Friday last week.
“The international community should…jointly oppose the use or threats to use nuclear weapons, advocate that nuclear wars must not be used and nuclear wars must not be fought, in order to prevent a nuclear crisis in Eurasia,” said Xi.
