INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged the West to stop playing around with Russia and impose tougher sanctions on Moscow to end its &senseless
war& in Ukraine, adding his country would remain independent, the only question was at what price.Zelenskiy&s criticism of the West has
mounted in recent days as the European Union moves slowly towards a possible Russian oil embargo and as thousands of Russian forces try to
encircle two key eastern cities of Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk.Three months into its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has abandoned its
assault on the capital Kyiv and is trying to consolidate control of the industrial eastern Donbas region, where it has backed a separatist
revolt since 2014.Western military analysts see the battle for Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk as a potential turning point in the war after
a shift in momentum towards Russia following the surrender of Ukraine&s garrison in Mariupol last week.Ukraine will always be an independent
state and it won''t be broken
The only question is what price our people will have to pay for their freedom, and what price Russia will pay for this senseless war against
us,& said Zelenskiy in a late-night address on Thursday.The catastrophic unfolding events could be still stopped if the world treated the
situation in Ukraine as if it were facing the same situation, if the powers that be did not play around with Russia but really pressed to
end the war.Zelenskiy complained about disagreements within the EU on more sanctions against Russia and asked why some nations were being
allowed to block the plan.The EU is discussing a sixth round of punitive measures,including an embargo on Russian oil imports
Such a moverequires unanimity but Hungary opposes the idea for now on thegrounds its economy would suffer too much.How many more weeks will
the European Union try to agree ona sixth package?& Zelenskiy asked, noting Russia was receiving one billion euros a day from the 27-nation
bloc for energy supplies.Pressure on Russia is literally a matter of saving lives.Every day of procrastination, weakness, various disputes
orproposals to ‘pacify& the aggressor at the expense of the victimmerely means more Ukrainians being killed.Zelenskiy&s comments mark the
second day in a row that hehas sharpened his criticism of the world&s approach to the war.On Wednesday, he savaged suggestions that Kyiv
makeconcessions to bring peace, saying the idea smacked of attemptsto appease Nazi Germany in 1938.ADVANCING RUSSIAN TROOPSRussian forces
attacked from three sides to try to encircle Ukrainian forces in Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk on Thursday, said Ukraine&s military
If the two cities straddling the Siverskiy Donets river fall, nearly all of the Donbas province of Luhansk would be under Russian
control.Luhansk governor Serhiy Gaidai said around 50 Russian soldiers had reached the highway and &managed to gain a foothold&, even
setting up a checkpoint.The checkpoint was broken, they were thrown back … the Russian army does not control the route now, but they are
It was possible Ukrainian troops would leave &one settlement, maybe two
We need to win the war, not the battle,& he said.It is clear that our boys are slowly retreating to more fortified positions & we need to
hold back this horde.Ukrainian interior ministry adviser Vadym Denisenko told a briefing 25 Russian battalions were attempting to surround
the Ukrainian forces.Reuters journalists in Russian-held territory further south saw proof of Moscow&s advance in Svitlodarsk, where
Ukrainian forces withdrew earlier this week.The town is now firmly under control of pro-Russian fighters, who have occupied the local
government building and hung a Soviet hammer and sickle flag at the door.Reuters drone footage of the nearby abandoned battlefield showed
craters pockmarking a green field surrounded by wrecked buildings
Pro-Russian fighters were milling about in trenches.The Donbas advance has been backed by massive artillery bombardment
Ukraine&s military said 50 towns in the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces came under shelling on Thursday.The head of Ukraine&s armed forces,
Valeriy Zaluzhny, called on Telegram for more Western arms, particularly &weapons that will allow us to hit the enemy at a big
distance&.Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov later warned that any supplies of weapons that could reach Russian territory would be a &a
serious step towards unacceptable escalation&.DANGER OF ESCALATIONWestern countries led by the United States have provided Ukraine with
long-range weaponry, including M777 howitzers from Washington and Harpoon anti-ship missiles from Denmark.Washington is even considering
providing Kyiv with a rocket system that can have a range of hundreds of kilometres, and has held discussions with Kyiv about the danger of
escalation if it strikes deep inside Russia, United States and diplomatic officials told Reuters.We have concerns about escalation and yet
still do not want to put geographic limits or tie their hands too much with the stuff we&re giving them,& said one United States official,
speaking on condition of anonymity.Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a &special operation& to disarm Ukraine and protect it from fascists
Ukraine and the West say the fascist allegation is baseless and that the war is an unprovoked act of aggression.Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry
Peskov said Moscow expects Ukraine to accept its demands at any future peace talks
It wants Kyiv to recognise Russian sovereignty over the Crimea peninsula Moscow seized in 2014, and the independence of separatist-claimed
territory.lsquo;Stop playing& with Russia, end war: Zelenskiy tells WestPresident Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged the West to stop playing around
with Russia and impose tougher sanctions on Moscow to end its &senseless war& in Ukraine, adding his country would remain independent, the
only question was at what price.Zelenskiy&s criticism of the West has mounted in recent days as the European Union moves slowly towards a
possible Russian oil embargo and as thousands of Russian forces try to encircle two key eastern cities of Sievierodonetsk and
Lysychansk.Three months into its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has abandoned its assault on the capital Kyiv and is trying to consolidate
control of the industrial eastern Donbas region, where it has backed a separatist revolt since 2014.Western military analysts see the battle
for Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk as a potential turning point in the war after a shift in momentum towards Russia following the surrender
of Ukraine&s garrison in Mariupol last week.Ukraine will always be an independent state and it won''t be broken
The only question is what price our people will have to pay for their freedom, and what price Russia will pay for this senseless war against
us,& said Zelenskiy in a late-night address on Thursday.The catastrophic unfolding events could be still stopped if the world treated the
situation in Ukraine as if it were facing the same situation, if the powers that be did not play around with Russia but really pressed to
end the war.Zelenskiy complained about disagreements within the EU on more sanctions against Russia and asked why some nations were being
allowed to block the plan.The EU is discussing a sixth round of punitive measures,including an embargo on Russian oil imports
Such a moverequires unanimity but Hungary opposes the idea for now on thegrounds its economy would suffer too much.How many more weeks will
the European Union try to agree ona sixth package?& Zelenskiy asked, noting Russia was receiving one billion euros a day from the 27-nation
bloc for energy supplies.Pressure on Russia is literally a matter of saving lives.Every day of procrastination, weakness, various disputes
orproposals to ‘pacify& the aggressor at the expense of the victimmerely means more Ukrainians being killed.Zelenskiy&s comments mark the
second day in a row that hehas sharpened his criticism of the world&s approach to the war.On Wednesday, he savaged suggestions that Kyiv
makeconcessions to bring peace, saying the idea smacked of attemptsto appease Nazi Germany in 1938.ADVANCING RUSSIAN TROOPSRussian forces
attacked from three sides to try to encircle Ukrainian forces in Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk on Thursday, said Ukraine&s military
If the two cities straddling the Siverskiy Donets river fall, nearly all of the Donbas province of Luhansk would be under Russian
control.Luhansk governor Serhiy Gaidai said around 50 Russian soldiers had reached the highway and &managed to gain a foothold&, even
setting up a checkpoint.The checkpoint was broken, they were thrown back … the Russian army does not control the route now, but they are
It was possible Ukrainian troops would leave &one settlement, maybe two
We need to win the war, not the battle,& he said.It is clear that our boys are slowly retreating to more fortified positions & we need to
hold back this horde.Ukrainian interior ministry adviser Vadym Denisenko told a briefing 25 Russian battalions were attempting to surround
the Ukrainian forces.Reuters journalists in Russian-held territory further south saw proof of Moscow&s advance in Svitlodarsk, where
Ukrainian forces withdrew earlier this week.The town is now firmly under control of pro-Russian fighters, who have occupied the local
government building and hung a Soviet hammer and sickle flag at the door.Reuters drone footage of the nearby abandoned battlefield showed
craters pockmarking a green field surrounded by wrecked buildings
Pro-Russian fighters were milling about in trenches.The Donbas advance has been backed by massive artillery bombardment
Ukraine&s military said 50 towns in the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces came under shelling on Thursday.The head of Ukraine&s armed forces,
Valeriy Zaluzhny, called on Telegram for more Western arms, particularly &weapons that will allow us to hit the enemy at a big
distance&.Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov later warned that any supplies of weapons that could reach Russian territory would be a &a
serious step towards unacceptable escalation&.DANGER OF ESCALATIONWestern countries led by the United States have provided Ukraine with
long-range weaponry, including M777 howitzers from Washington and Harpoon anti-ship missiles from Denmark.Washington is even considering
providing Kyiv with a rocket system that can have a range of hundreds of kilometres, and has held discussions with Kyiv about the danger of
escalation if it strikes deep inside Russia, United States and diplomatic officials told Reuters.We have concerns about escalation and yet
still do not want to put geographic limits or tie their hands too much with the stuff we&re giving them,& said one United States official,
speaking on condition of anonymity.Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a &special operation& to disarm Ukraine and protect it from fascists
Ukraine and the West say the fascist allegation is baseless and that the war is an unprovoked act of aggression.Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry
Peskov said Moscow expects Ukraine to accept its demands at any future peace talks
It wants Kyiv to recognise Russian sovereignty over the Crimea peninsula Moscow seized in 2014, and the independence of separatist-claimed
territory.The post ‘Stop playing& with Russia, end war: Zelenskiy tells West first appeared on Ariana News.
