Scottish Daily Mail

Russia: We won’t stop at Donbas – we want more

- By James Franey Europe Correspond­ent

RUSSIA last night vowed to seize more of Ukraine’s territory in retaliatio­n for Western arms deliveries to the country.

Moscow’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov claimed ‘the geography has changed’ and that the Russian army will not focus ‘only’ on the eastern Donbas region.

‘It is no longer about the

‘Exacerbate the situation’

Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic,’ Mr Lavrov told Kremlin state media, referring to the bogus breakaway republics in eastern Ukraine.

‘It is also about the Kherson and Zaporizhzh­ia regions and a number of other territorie­s,’ he said of the occupied regions in the south of Ukraine.

‘This process is ongoing, consistent­ly and persistent­ly.’

In the most open admission of Moscow’s true goals for the ongoing war, Mr Lavrov also ruled out negotiatin­g a peace deal, claiming that ‘it doesn’t make any sense’ because Kyiv has no ‘desire to discuss anything in earnest’.

Russian forces abandoned a botched attempt to seize the capital city of Kyiv in April, preferring to focus on gains in eastern Ukraine.

But Mr Lavrov warned: ‘If the West continues to pump Ukraine full of weaponry out of impotent rage or a desire to exacerbate the situation then that means our geographic­al tasks will move even further from the current line.’

The US has pledged just under £8billion in ‘security assistance’, while Britain has offered £2billion worth of antitank missiles, rocket launchers and military vehicles.

The warning came as Russia launched fresh missile strikes on the eastern city of Kharkiv, killing three people, including a 13-year-old boy.

Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff, said that new weapons expected before the end of the year would boost chances of victory.

He said time was of the essence for the defenders, adding: ‘It is very important for us not to enter the winter. After winter, when the Russians will have more time to dig in, it will be more difficult.’

Vladimir Putin was given a taste of his own medicine when Turkey’s leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan left him waiting awkwardly in front of TV cameras before a meeting in Iran.

The ploy is routinely used by Putin with Western leaders – Mr Erdogan was left waiting by him for almost two minutes in 2020.

‘Winter... will be more difficult’

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