Russia consolidates its control in two new towns and exchanges with Estonia a downgrade of diplomatic relations

Moscow: Our conflict with the West is closer to a real war

Ukrainian soldiers near the front line near Soledar in the Donetsk region.

Reuters

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said yesterday that the conflict between Moscow and the West is closer to a real war, and at a time when Russia has strengthened its control in two new towns between Bakhmut and Solidar, Russia and Estonia exchanged a downgrade of diplomatic relations.

Lavrov added, “When we talk about what is happening there, in Ukraine, we are talking about the fact that this is no longer a hybrid war, but almost a real war, which the West has been preparing for a long time against Russia, trying to destroy everything Russian from language to culture.” ».

Lavrov stressed that "the more Ukraine refuses dialogue, the more difficult it will be to reach a political solution, and the West pressured Ukraine to stop negotiations with Russia."

A few days ago, Lavrov said that the United States had formed a coalition of European countries to solve the "Russian question" in the same way "in which Adolf Hitler sought a final solution to exterminate European Jewry."

Lavrov said that Washington "is using the same method that Napoleon and the Nazis used to try to subjugate Europe in order to destroy Russia."

He added, "The West corrupted the principles of the United Nations, and there was no respect for the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of states," noting that America used its forces outside its territory hundreds of times, in flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter.

On peace in Ukraine, Lavrov said that Moscow has not yet seen any serious proposals to establish peace in Ukraine, and that the ideas of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on this issue are unacceptable.

Lavrov stated that Moscow is ready to discuss the matter with Western countries and respond to any serious proposals, adding that any talks must address Russia's many security concerns.

This comes at a time when the pro-Russian separatist leader in eastern Ukraine, Denis Pushlin, appeared in the city of Solidar, which Moscow declared control of more than a week ago, while Kyiv denies that it has fallen into the hands of the Russians.

Yesterday, the separatists announced the control of the villages of Krasnopolivka and Dvorechye, which are located near Solidar.

And the General Staff in Donetsk stated on “Telegram” that “on January 23, 2023, the Russian armed forces took control of Krasnopolevka and Dvorechye,” the two towns located in the region that constitute the stronghold of the pro-Russian separatists.

The two towns are close to Bakhmut, the epicenter of fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces for months in eastern Ukraine.

On Sunday evening, Pushlin said, in a message he posted on "Telegram", accompanied by a video clip in which he appears among burning buildings and shattered windows.

"There are very few residents left," Pushlin added, in this city, which had a population of about 11,000 people before the war, located north of Bakhmut.

Yesterday, the regional administration reported “active hostilities near Bakhmut and Solidar,” without disclosing further details.

According to the Russian army, the seizure of Solidar paves the way for encircling the neighboring city of Bakhmut, which Moscow has sought to control since the summer and is witnessing fierce battles between the two sides.

This comes at a time when Russia announced, yesterday, the downgrading of diplomatic relations with Estonia, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), accusing Estonia of spreading “Russophobia.” Estonia responded by asking Moscow’s ambassador to leave the country.

Estonia and its Baltic neighbors Latvia and Lithuania are among a group of NATO members that are aggressively calling for Germany to supply its Leopard battle tanks to support Ukraine in the face of the Russian offensive.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said it had told Estonia's envoy that he should leave the country next month and that a temporary chargé d'affaires would represent each other's interests in each other's capital instead of the ambassador.

Estonia's Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said his country had reciprocated and asked the Russian ambassador to leave by February 7.

"We will continue to support Ukraine at a time when Russia is planning large-scale attacks, and we call on like-minded countries to increase their assistance to Ukraine," he said in a statement.

Estonia joined other allies of Ukraine last week in sending more of its weapons.

Moscow indicated that the step it took yesterday regarding diplomatic relations came in response to a move by Estonia to reduce the size of the Russian mission in Tallinn. 

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