Russians stymied in Ukraine; Finland favours joining Nato
RUSSIAN ARMY LOST UP TO ONE-THIRD OF ITS COMBAT STRENGTH SINCE FEBRUARY
Almost three months into the conflict with Ukraine, Russia’s military faces a bogged-down war, the prospect of a bigger Nato and a defending country buoyed by its win in a hugely popular pan-European music competition yesterday.
Top Nato diplomats, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, gathered yesterday in Berlin as Finland announced it would apply to join the Western alliance.
Sweden’s governing party planned to announce its position on seeking Nato membership later yesterday.
Western military officials said yesterday that Moscow’s campaign in Ukraine had slowed to a snail’s pace. They said the Russian army had lost up to one-third of its combat strength since February.
“The brutal invasion [by] Russia is losing momentum,” Nato Deputy Secretary-General Mircea Geoana said. “We know that with the bravery of the Ukrainian people and army, and with our help, Ukraine can win this war.”
Morale-boosting victory
Ukraine, meanwhile, celebrated a morale-boosting victory in the Eurovision Song Contest. The folk-rap ensemble Kalush Orchestra won the glitzy, televised Eurovision contest with its song Stefania, which has become a popular anthem among Ukrainians during the war. Votes from home viewers across Europe cemented the victory.
President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed his nation would claim the customary honour of hosting the next annual competition.
“Step by step, we are forcing the occupiers to leave the Ukrainian land,” Zelensky said.
Russian and Ukrainian fighters are engaged in a grinding battle for the country’s eastern industrial heartland, the Donbas.
Russia’s forces, meanwhile. continue to suffer “consistently high levels of attrition” while failing to achieve any substantial territory, Britain’s Defence Ministry said in its daily intelligence update yesterday.
“Russia’s Donbas offensive has lost momentum and fallen significantly behind schedule,” the ministry said on Twitter.
“Under the current conditions, Russia is unlikely to dramatically accelerate its rate of advance over the next 30 days,” the ministry said.
Guarding supply routes
The assessments of Russia’s war performance by Ukraine’s supporters came as Russian troops retreated from around Kharkiv, after bombarding it for weeks. Ukraine’s military has said Moscow is focused now instead on guarding supply routes, while launching mortar, artillery and air strikes in an attempt to deplete Ukrainian forces and destroy fortifications in the country’s east.
Ukrainian troops are clearing villages on the outskirts of Kharkiv after pushing the Russians back, and some residents were returning.
“The war has shifted to a new level of distance artillery fighting — we fire at them, they fire at us,” said a Ukrainian commander.
The invasion of Ukraine has other countries along Russia’s flank worried they could be next. The government of long-neutral Finland formally announced yesterday that it would apply for Nato membership.
“This is a historic day,” President Sauli Niinisto, announcing Finland’s decision alongside Prime Minister Sanna Marin. Sweden’s governing Social Democratic Party was set to announce its decision on Nato membership yesterday. If it comes out in favour, as is expected, an application to join the Western military alliance could happen within days.
Nato operates by consensus, and the Nordic nations’ potential bids were thrown into question Friday when Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country is “not of a favourable opinion”.
Sanna Marin, Finland’s PM, said joining Nato would help guarantee peace for Finland. “We have had wars with Russia, and we don’t want that kind of future for ourselves or for our children,” she said.
Ukrainian troops are clearing villages on the outskirts of Kharkiv after pushing the Russians back, and some residents were returning.