Putin gives his version of the state of the war in Ukraine

An unprecedented meeting since the beginning of the war. Domestic media correspondents, along with military bloggers who report daily actions on the battlefront in Ukraine, held an exchange with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Most of the topics discussed at the meeting were related to the war. Even the president raised the question, without delving into details, of whether Russia should try to take kyiv, the Ukrainian capital.

“Should we go back there or not? Why am I asking such a rhetorical question?” he sentenced in front of the Russian correspondents and bloggers gathered in one of the Kremlin halls. “Only I can answer this,” she concluded without addressing the question further.

Putin’s public hypothesis poses a strategic challenge for Ukraine, focused on a counter-offensive in the east of the countryand a call for attention not to neglect the capital.

Also on the table was the seizure of Ukrainian territory, the Black Sea grain agreement, the Ukrainian counteroffensive and its Army’s response, the mistakes and losses of the Kremlin troops, the delivery of Western weapons, the destruction of the dam of Nova Kakhovka and peace, among other issues. What was Putin’s overview of these issues?

The Grain Deal

The pact, negotiated under the auspices of the UN and Turkey, allowed Ukraine to resume cereal exports to the neediest nations, thus avoiding a world food crisis. The acceptance of the agreement by Russia was not free, the document was accompanied by several requests for the country to market its agricultural products despite Western sanctions. Also the reconnection of the agricultural bank rosselkhozbank to the SWIFT payment system.

From the first weeks of the agreement, Putin denounced the counterpart’s lack of compliance. “Unfortunately, once again we were fooled: nothing was done in terms of liberalizing the supply of our grain to foreign markets. There were many conditions that Westerners had to meet under the leadership of the UN”, he stated, for which he raised the possibility of not renewing the agreement.

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In addition, he denounced —according to Russian estimates— that only 3.5% of exports go to the most needy nations and that 40% reach the European Union. It must be remembered that the products of this sector, such as fertilizers, are made by companies owned by some of the richest men in Russia. In this sense, Putin’s conditions could be read as an attempt to reduce discontent within the country over the penalties.

According to the Reuters news agency, the sanctions do not target agricultural products. However, transport logistics, payments, insurance, among others, pose strong obstacles for the companies that sell them. The grain deal has allowed Ukraine to export more than 31 million tons, mainly wheat and corn. China, Spain, Turkey, Egypt, the Netherlands and Bangladesh are among the main destinations. In May the agreement was extended for two months.

The Ukrainian counteroffensive

According to Putin, the Ukrainian troops have suffered “catastrophic” losses in this new stage that includes the kyiv counteroffensive. The president stressed that, since the start of this operation, his forces have lost some 54 tanks, while Ukraine has lost at least 160, added to some 360 ​​armored vehicles.

The head of state commented that between 25% and 30% of the Western weapons delivered to Kiev have been destroyed in the last ten days by Russian aviation and artillery, all this according to Kremlin estimates.

Although he did not reveal the number of casualties of his own, he stressed that they have “ten times less than the casualties of the Armed Forces of Ukraine”. According to him, they will not be able to hold out for long depending on the supply of their allies.

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As for the Russian response, he noted that “everything will depend on the potential that exists at the time the so-called counteroffensive ends.” “That’s the key.”, he asserted. Then he made it clear that Ukraine will not be supported forevereven from the United States.

Washington “appears as if it does not fear” an escalation, he said. And he added: “Instead, there are a lot of reasonable people out there who don’t want to take things to a Third World War, in which there will be no victors, including the United States.”

At another point, he ironically referred to German tanks, stating that the Leopards “burn beautifully.” The information provided by Putin has not been commented on by Ukraine.

Mistakes in the Russian campaign

In an act of some self-criticism, Putin acknowledged the deficiencies that sometimes affect the performance of his Army. Despite the rearmament that his forces have undergone in the last eight years, Putin asserted that the missing equipment includes precision munitions and communications equipment. “During the special military operation it became clear that there were many things missing (…) we must produce different drones, offensive and spy. But this takes time”, he sentenced.

He also admitted planning flaws, mainly in defending the borders against sabotage and “enemy” incursions. “We must protect our citizens (…) we must strengthen the security of the border. In principle, one could have thought that the enemy would behave like this and, surely, prepare better,” he pointed out.

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Thus, Putin referred to the creation of a security zone, as a response to these attacks. “If this continues, then possibly we will have to study the question, and I say this very carefully, of creating on the territory of Ukraine a kind of sanitary zone at such a distance that it is impossible to reach our territory.”, he stressed.

He also recognized the flaws in the anti-aircraft defense system against drone attacks. One that has been built to respond to planes and missiles, while teams have a hard time spotting the latest drones, built with lightweight materials, even wood.

He also discussed whether he would make a new call to the Army reserves, something he denied for the moment. This is one of the most unpopular measures among the Russians. Many of them, mainly men, fled to some neighboring nations to avoid conscription.

The destruction of Nova Kakhovka

Unsurprisingly, Putin blamed the Ukrainians for “deliberately” blowing up the Nova Kakhovka dam. According to the president, Western missiles were used, but he left some open doubts.

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He himself affirmed that his soldiers did not “detect large explosions” before the collapse of the dam, which ruled out that the structure had previously planted mines.

Despite the fact that in his words he made it clear that Russia was not interested in the destruction of Nova Kakhovka, since it flooded a good part of the territories occupied by Moscow in that area. “Unfortunately, this frustrated the counteroffensive on this front”, he stressed. Likewise, he recognized that the area should be cleaned up due to the death of a large number of cattle and wild animals, as well as the flooding of cemeteries and garbage dumps.

According to Putin, what is needed for peace?

Finally, he referred to the possibility of the end of the conflict. Putin said that his country is willing to sit at the negotiating table, but that the most effective way to stop combat actions is to stop the supply of Western military equipment.

“The key to solving the problem is on your side. If you really want today’s conflict to be resolved through conversations, they only need to make a decision – to stop supplying weapons. That’s all. Ukraine does not produce anything itself. tomorrow they would like conversations of peace, not formally, but for all purposes,” he said.

The Kremlin chief blamed Ukraine for “throwing everything away” when they had a “thick” deal drawn up by negotiators from both sides. He also highlighted the hypothesis that the West seeks to defeat Russia through Ukraine.

Reactions to Putin’s words

The United Nations (UN) did not remain silent in the face of Putin’s criticism of the grain deal. One of his spokesmen, Stéphane Dujarric, avoiding a direct response to the Russian president, argued that the UN will continue efforts to keep the pact alive.

According to Dujarric, despite the obstacles, “some achievements” have been made in terms of the export of Russian agricultural products. He also stressed that the UN has nothing to say about the final destination in the distribution of Ukrainian grains or the “commercial contracts” that govern their destination.

On the other hand, in a previously agreed meeting, the NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, is on a working visit to the United States. There, in a meeting with President Joe Biden, he unveiled another million-dollar aid package for Ukraine.

The assistance, valued at more than $300 million, consists of Javelin anti-tank missiles, munitions for HIMARS delivery systems, anti-aircraft ammunition and missiles, and at least 15 Bradley fighting vehicles. This set of military techniques comes after another security assistance package worth more than $2 billion.

With Reuters, AP and EFE