Ukraine admits counter-offensive not as expected

Ukraine thừa nhận chiến dịch phản công không như mong đợi - 1 — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (Photo: Reuters).

"We will not back down. We are fighting the second strongest army in the world . We wanted faster results, but unfortunately we did not get the results we expected," President Zelensky told the AP news agency on December 1.

This is partly because Ukraine has not received weapons from the West in full and on time, he explained.

"We do not have all the weapons we want. We do not have enough resources to achieve the desired results faster. However, this does not mean that we should give up or surrender. We are confident in our actions, fighting for what is ours," Mr. Zelensky emphasized.

On the other hand, he said, Ukraine has achieved certain positive results in recent months. Ukraine has gradually gained territory against a better-equipped, better-defended opponent.

In addition, Ukraine also degraded the capabilities of Russia's Black Sea Fleet after penetrating Moscow's defenses, targeting the fleet headquarters.

The temporary grain corridor that Kiev set up after Russia withdrew from the Black Sea Initiative to create a safe corridor for grain exports is still operating.

Earlier, Mr. Zelensky declared that now is not the time to negotiate with Russia and emphasized that Kiev will never make territorial concessions in exchange for peace .

Russian officials also said they currently see no prospect of peace talks with Ukraine to end the conflict that has lasted nearly two years.

"So far, we have not seen any signs from Ukraine or its partners that they are ready to seek a political solution to this conflict," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on December 1.

The Russian diplomat added: "If you pay attention to what NATO and EU leaders say, you can see that their only goal is to continue supporting Ukraine because if Ukraine is defeated, it will be the defeat of all Europe."

Mr. Lavrov also emphasized that Russia does not see any reason to reconsider the goals of its special military campaign in Ukraine.

Source