Ukraine may not be able to reclaim Crimea by force, US says

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/03/24/ukraine-reclaim-crimea-force-kyiv-secretary-state-antony-blinken/?fbclid=IwAR1xoJlUhxtZtDxK3nn_gHAPzmFno_IEqKv3IdXJ3lQU7JcbW-lf-euRtVw

Ukraine may not be able to reclaim Crimea by force, US says
Secretary of State Antony Blinken claims some of Kyiv’s war aims may only be achieved through diplomacy instead of military action
By
Roland Oliphant,
SENIOR FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT
24 March 2023 • 5:08pm

Ukraine may not be able to retake all Russian-occupied territory by force, the US Secretary of State has suggested, in remarks likely to anger Kyiv.

The United States is Ukraine’s most important military backer and has pledged to continue its support for “as long as it takes” to defeat the Russian invasion.

But Antony Blinken told Congress on Thursday that some of Ukraine’s stated war aims might only be possible through diplomacy.

“I think there’s going to be territory in Ukraine that the Ukrainians are determined to fight for on the ground; there may be territory that they decide that they’ll have to try to get back in other ways,” he said when asked whether the United States backed president Volodymyr Zelensky’s goal of liberating Crimea.

He added: “These have to be Ukrainian decisions about what they want their future to be and how that lands in terms of the sovereignty, the territorial integrity, the independence of the country.”

“What we don’t want, for everyone’s interests, is to have this settle in a place and in a way that simply invites the Russians to reset, rearm and then re-attack,” he added.

The comments underline unresolved tensions between Ukraine and several of its Western backers over the possible outcome of the war and especially the status of Crimea.

Mr Blinken warned Kyiv if it is determined to fight for territory on the ground it could invite the Russians to reset, rearm and then re-attack CREDIT: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana
Russia annexed Crimea during its first invasion of Ukraine in 2014. Ukraine never accepted the annexation but did not attempt to challenge it by force before Russia’s full-scale invasion last year.

Russia considers Crimea sovereign Russian territory, and some fear the Kremlin may consider an attempt to liberate it sufficiently threatening to warrant the use of nuclear weapons.

Since September last year, Russia has also claimed the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine, but has not used its deterrent against Ukrainian forces fighting to liberate them.

On Friday, Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council and an ally of Vladimir Putin, said Russia wants to create demilitarised buffer zones inside Ukraine around areas it has annexed.

“We need to achieve all the goals that have been set to protect our territories, that is the territories of the Russian Federation,” Mr Medvedev said in an interview with Russian media posted on Telegram.

We need to “throw out all the foreigners who are there in the broad sense of the word, create a buffer zone which would not allow the use of any types of weapons that work at medium and short distances, that is 70-100 kilometres, to demilitarise it”, he said, adding that Russia would have to push further into Ukraine if such zones were not established.

Russia currently controls just under a fifth of Ukraine’s territory, including Crimea.

President Zelensky has repeatedly stated his government’s war aims include the liberation of all occupied territory including Crimea and parts of Donbas occupied since 2014.

The objective has divided Ukraine’s Western allies.

A man takes a selfie in front of an artist's impression of the Kerch bridge on fire, the only crossing between the occupied Crimean peninsula and Russia CREDIT: Ed Ram/Getty Images
Some believe peace would be impossible without retaking Crimea because Russia would retain both a base from which to attack Ukraine and a motive to do so.

Capturing it, on the other hand, could deal a decisive and humiliating blow to Vladimir Putin that could force Russia to sue for peace.

Lt Gen Ben Hodges, a former commander of US Army Europe, argued last month that liberating Crimea wou

War is easy but the destruction that comes with it is unbearable

The four recently annexed land can never be taken back let alone Crimea.

Please say no to war

Ukraine is winning my foot, just imagine Ukraine surrendering after all the unnecessary deaths and destruction.

like Americans left Afghanistan in the middle of the night without informing anyone. That's how brave they were.

I thought they said Ukraine took back that city from Russia some weeks back... so na just mouth things. If UK and US can not do anything to help Ukraine than talk talk.. why not let Ukraine apologise to their senior before everyone go die finish for that country

habsydiamond:
I thought they said Ukraine took back that city from Russia some weeks back... so na just mouth things. If UK and US can not do anything to help Ukraine than talk talk.. why not let Ukraine apologise to their senior before everyone go die finish for that country

Omo, Ukraine has not yet realized they have been used as baits. I hope that when they finally understand this fact, it will not be too late for them makachuks

Onucs:


Omo, Ukraine has not yet realized they have been used as baits. I hope that when they finally understand this fact, it will not be too late for them makachuks

Ukraine just they follow those two like mumu... dem for don forget all these fights since now. Only God knows what their population would be right now.

This war will only end on Russian terms.

Negotiation strategy 101.

When you're negotiating with anyone, make sure the offer on the table is the best they will ever get, and if they will not take it, the next offer will be worse than the previous.

That's exactly what Putin did. The first offer was to acknowledge Crimea as Russian territory and implement the minsk agreement, Ukraine refused. Then war broke out. Then the next offer was to begin dialogue and get it solved diplomatically.

Instead, Elensky signed a decree that he will never negotiate with Russia until Putin is not in power. But he stupidly ignored the simple fact that when negotiating with a stronger opponent, that better deals are in the past, not in the future.

One year later, Zaporizhia, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson is gone, and now Bakhmut is about to fall. Russia may probably go for Odessa, and make Ukraine a landlocked country once and for all. The world is a place where the strong make the rules and the weak follow. Sad, but that's how it is.

The size of territory Russia have taken from Ukraine is more than the size of The Netherlands, Belgium, Singapore, Luxembourg and Gambia combined. And if they keep dreaming in their delusion that they will defeat Russia, then they will loose more.

In life, you should not only know the realities that are applicable to you, you should also accept it. For example, Cuba hosted Soviet missles, and they are still under heavy sanctions from the US thirty years after Soviet Union have disintegrated.

All the nonsense of territorial integrity, sovereignty can only be guaranteed if your interest doesn't conflict with the interest of your neighbour who is a superpower. An amateur political student knows this. For example if Benin republic start habouring terrorist, then Nigeria will go to war with it.

Finland gave up lands to Russia during the winter war, for peace to reign. Mexico even gave the US, 55 percent of its territory (Texas, California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, most of Arizona and Colorado, and parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming).

Elensky is such an idiot. He allowed the Americans used him and his country as a pawn to defeat Russia, and this is the result. Such a fool. The US empire will crumble, And no force on earth can stop it. Ukrainian leadership is an enemy of the the people who don't want to be under American domination, and if you love freedom, then you must not support the West.

pol23:
This war will only end on Russian terms.

Definitely...there's no doubt about that.

pansophist:
Negotiation strategy 101.

When you're negotiating with anyone, make sure the offer on the table is the best they will ever get, and if they will not take it, the next offer will be worse than the previous.

That's exactly what Putin did. The first offer was to acknowledge Crimea as Russian territory and implement the minsk agreement, Ukraine refused. Then war broke out. Then the next offer was to begin dialogue and get it solved diplomatically.

Instead, Elensky signed a decree that he will never negotiate with Russia until Putin is not in power. But he stupidly ignored the simple fact that when negoting with a stronger opponent, that better deals are in the past, not in the future.

One year later, Zaporizhia, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson is gone, and now Bakhmut is about to fall. Russia may probably go for Odessa, and make Ukraine a landlocked country once and for all. The world is a place where the strong make the rules and the weak follow. Sad, but that's how it is.

The size of territory Russia have taken from Ukraine is more than the size of The Netherlands, Belgium, Singapore, Luxembourg and Gambia combined. And if they keep dreaming in their delusion that they will defeat Russia, then they will loose more.

In life, you should not only know the realities that are applicable to you, you should also accept it. For example, Cuba hosted Soviet missles, and they are still under heavy sanctions from the US thirty years after Soviet Union have disintegrated.

All the nonsense of territorial integrity, sovereignty can only be guaranteed if your interest doesn't conflict with the interest of your neighbour who is a superpower. An amateur political student knows this. For example if Benin republic start habouring terrorist, then Nigeria will go to war with it.

Finland gave up lands to Russia during the winter war, for peace to reign. Mexico even gave the US, 55 percent of its territory (Texas, California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, most of Arizona and Colorado, and parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming).

Elensky is such an idiot. He allowed the Americans used him and his country as a pawn to defeat Russia, and this is the result. Such a fool. The US empire will crumble, And no force on earth can stop it. Ukrainian leadership is an enemy of the the people who don't want to be under American domination, and if you love freedom, then you must not support the West.

This is an insightful read. Just learned something. Before you go to war, you have to win it first.


Russia won the war before it even started hence why they called it military operation and not even war. Ukraine went to war before winning it with the mindset of winning it. 😂 😂 Hence they call it invasion.


Ukraine should not have listened to USA. She should have made peace and enjoyed the umbrella of being the closest country to a giant.

Regex:


This is an insightful read. Just learned something. Before you go to war, you have to win it first.


Russia won the war before it even started hence why they called it military operation and not even war. Ukraine went to war before winning it with the mindset of winning it. 😂 😂 Hence they call it invasion.


Ukraine should not have listened to USA. She should have made peace and enjoyed the umbrella of being the closest country to a giant.

One has natural resources to drag the war for long time.
France is facing massive anti government protests, the government can’t even talk about Ukraine now.

seunny4lif:

One has natural resources to drag the war for long time.
France is facing massive anti government protests, the government can’t even talk about Ukraine now.

Do you think it's a way France wants to shy away from the war. They have always shown that characteristics. I'm just saying tho.

Regex:


Do you think it's a way France wants to shy away from the war. They have always shown that characteristics. I'm just saying tho.

Do they even have option now, the high inflation is worst in France and Germany more than the government is reporting it.
Russia gas and oil have help Germany and France for years.

seunny4lif:

Do they even have option now, the high inflation is worst in France and Germany more than the government is reporting it.
Russia gas and oil have help Germany and France for years.

The easy money they make in Russia is no longer available.

They used sanctions to cut themselves.

No money to retire old people on time so they want to extend the age

That what you get for licking uncle Sam shoes.