Vladimir Putin will go to the end, French President Emmanuel Macron said after a telephone conversation with the Russian president.
This is also confirmed by the situation on the Ukrainian battlefield. In the face of a mostly horrified world, Russian troops are advancing slowly, but, it seems, unstoppable. The feeling of powerlessness to prevent Putin from his plan causes anxiety and fear. The only force that could stop the penetration of Russian troops is NATO, but that would mean the beginning of the Third World War. After six decades, since the beginning of the Russian invasion, almost every day in the world media, some say - World War III as an insidious threat.
On the war map of the penetration of Russian troops from the north, east and south, the goal of the offensive begins to be seen: to occupy Odesa and Mariupol, occupy the entire coast and cut off Ukraine from the Black Sea; the siege and massacre of Kiev until it surrenders and installs a pro-Russian government.
Disciplining with bombs
Due to the unexpectedly stubborn resistance of Ukrainians on all fronts and the refusal to accept what Putin sees as a security inevitability - Ukraine facing Moscow, not the West - rocket fire and bombing of cities in the path of Russian invasion have increased in recent days. Those attacks can be understood as a warning of what will happen to Kiev and any other city that does not agree to side with Russia and Putin's ideas for Ukrainians.
Images from the town of Borodiyanka, 50 kilometers northwest of Kyiv, show extensive destruction of civilian buildings. The drone footage of the Reuters agency shows the scale of the destruction, which, although the destruction is incomparably smaller for now, reminds of the apocalyptic images of Grozny and Aleppo after the Russian units finished with them. Ukrainian sources speak of a large number of dead and wounded.
Similar was the case in Chernihiv with about 280.000 inhabitants, where, in addition to military facilities, civil infrastructure and facilities were also destroyed.
Fierce fighting took place in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city with a population of 1,4 million, most of whom speak Russian as their mother tongue. The city was shelled for days because it did not want to surrender. Ukrainian sources speak of 87 damaged buildings. Some parts of the city do not have water, electricity and heating, Mayor Ihor Terekov told Ukrainian media. Terekov says that every fourth person in the city has relatives in Russia, but that "the city's attitude towards Russia today is completely different than ever before."
Let Mariupol, Odessa, Kiev prepare
The Russians also captured the largest nuclear power plant in Europe Zaporozhye and the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and now control a large part of the electricity supply. It is expected that during the eventual siege of Kiev, this could play a significant role in increasing the pressure.
The port city of Mariupol is completely surrounded and without electricity, water or heating. Explosions are heard around the city. Members of the territorial defense dig trenches and set up anti-tank barricades. The BBC reports conversations with locals who say they will fight to the end, despite terrifying images coming in from towns that have come under Russian fire.
Allegedly, Russia has largely disabled Ukraine's anti-aircraft defenses on the Black Sea in airstrikes.
Similar pictures in Odessa, the most important Ukrainian port city. Deputy Mayor Sergey Tatyuhin says that the city is preparing for defense, it will fight. CNN shows footage of sandbags being made into shelters on the city's beach, excavators digging trenches: a Russian landing from the sea is expected.
An almost 40 kilometer long military convoy is approaching Kiev. It has been standing for two days, the causes of the slowdown are only speculated. Military analysts agree that Putin's goal is to surround the capital first. If he does not surrender, a siege is expected: cutting off electricity, water and heating, and rocketing and bombing until he succumbs.
And nobody can stop Putin from realizing his plan. Everything will happen before the eyes of the powerless world.
AI/CNN/BBC/Reuters
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