KREMLIN MIGHT BE KRACKING
Diplo hints at push to retreat
Russia’s ambassador to the US hinted on Sunday at a split in the Kremlin over its invasion of Ukraine, as NATO declared that the war was not going according to Vladimir Putin’s plan, reports said.
Ambassador Anatoly Antonov implied on state-run TV that powerful people in the Kremlin were ready to give up the invasion, which began more than two months ago.
The 67-year-old military officer and senior diplomat, who insisted he was not among those willing to fold, implied some forces want to move back troops and “repent.”
He added that US officials were covertly giving the Kremlin terms of negotiation to stop the fighting — including moving back troops.
“The Americans are pushing us into negotiations, but with certain conditions,” Antonov said, according to the UK Metro. “I would specify three of them.
“First, to stop military action as part of the special military operation. Second, to move our troops back to where they were before 24 February.”
The third, he said, was “to repent for everything we have done.”
But he stressed that the Russian military wouldn’t back down.
“Naturally, we are saying firm and clear, and we are unambiguously sure of this — at least the Russian diplomats that work here — there will be no such capitulation. Never!” Antonov said.
“We are firmly convinced — and it would have been harder to work without this certainty — that all tasks set by the supreme commander-in-chief will be fully completed. We will never surrender, and never go back.”
Antonov’s inclusion of “at least the Russian diplomats that work here” suggested there were others who were not as convinced of Russia’s ultimate triumph.
Vlad’s plans unravel
Antonov’s comments came as NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned that Russia’s invasion was falling apart, the BBC reported Sunday.
Moscow’s attempt to capture the eastern Donbas region has “stalled,” which could lead to Ukraine winning the conflict, he said.
“Russia’s war in Ukraine is not going as Moscow had planned,” Stoltenberg said at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers.
“They failed to take Kyiv. They are pulling back from around Kharkiv. Their major offensive in Donbas has stalled. Russia is not achieving its strategic objectives,” he said.
Stoltenberg’s assertion came after the Russian army attempted to gain ground in parts of eastern Ukraine, and after Moscow’s forces changed their invasion strategy in the area after setbacks near Kyiv.