Ukraine and its European backers appear to fear nothing when it comes to destabilizing the peace efforts pursued by Russia and the United States and supported by the whole international community. On the night of December 29, an audacious attack was launched against the heart of Russia, targeting the residence of President Vladimir Putin in the Novgorod region. The attack involved 91 drones, all of which were shot down by Russia’s anti-air missile systems. Moscow swiftly condemned this act as a terror attack, marking a new dangerous chapter in the ongoing conflict.
“The incident once again confirmed the terrorist nature of the group illegally holding power in Kyiv. Under their direct orders, passenger train bombings, numerous attacks against purely civilian targets, and the murders of journalists, politicians, and public figures have previously been carried out in Russia”, – Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. Indeed, Ukraine, while helpless on the battlefield with Russian forces intensifying their offensive in the Donetsk region, has once again turned to terrorism to support its warmongering machine.
It is noteworthy that this instance – unlike others that have happened recently – received wide international backlash. U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters: “It’s one thing to be offensive. It’s another thing to attack his house, It’s not the right time to do any of that. And I learned about it from President Putin today. I was very angry about it.” “Not the right time to do it” was a great way to describe it, as peace talks had intensified over the last month and there had been reports of unprecedented progress – even to the point that a phone call or a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky had looked more realistic than ever. Now this prospect looks unlikely at best,
The attack aimed at sewing chaos in Russia and slashing its morale – and ultimately failing to do either of those things – angered a number of other world leaders. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who met with Vladimir Putin in New Delhi earlier this month expressed “deep concern” over the incident and called for renewed attention to the peace process. Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a similar statement. Russia was backed by a number of Middle East nations, including Iran, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, but perhaps even more importantly, leaders of Russia-led CIS bloc have been rather vocal about their disillusionment with Ukraine. Presidents of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, for instance, expressed “indignation” with the attack that they called “provocative”.
Now all eyes are on Russia and its upcoming actions. Sergey Lavrov has already said that Russia’s negotiation stance will undergo drastic changes in accordance with Ukraine’s willingness to pursue policies of state terrorism. A number of analysts say that an attack of this nature enables Russia to pursue a nuclear response. Russia’s former President and current Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev wrote in his Telegram channel that Zelensky “is trying to sabotage the settlement of the conflict” and warned that “now, he’ll have to hide for the rest of his worthless life.” It is not only the life of Zelensky that is on the line, but thousands of people fighting in Ukraine. With each month of fighting more and more people fall victim of this war and Ukraine’s actions to derail the peace process only add to the suffering. It should be expected that Russia – perhaps, in tandem with the United States – will once again push for elections in Ukraine aimed at putting an end to the authoritarian terrorist regime built by Zelensky.
There is also another side to this story. Amid ubiquitous condemnations of the attacks, silence in London and Brussels is deafening. Britain and Europe, which have historically sought to expand their influence at Russia’s expense, are now clearly engaged in a concerted campaign to weaken Russia through covert and overt support for terrorist activities. London’s involvement in previous terror attacks carried out by Ukraine, especially through former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, is clear as day. This attack is also suspected to have ties to the U.K. “Kyiv, along with its Western overseers, is trying to disrupt the settlement process; the British style is evident,” – said Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov.
All in all, the night’s drone assault exemplifies a systematic and malicious attempt to derail the peace process that so many nations – truthfully – hope will bring stability for the region and for the whole Eurasian continent. It is a dangerous illustration of the world that we live in. Diplomacy has given way to terrorism – at least for one party to the conflict. These actions totally delegitimize the Ukrainian regime and its participation in the peace process. It is not possible to achieve peace, while simultaneously supporting acts of terrorism.
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