Rome, Feb 20, (dpa/GNA) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has rejected remarks by his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron about keeping the door open for dialogue with Russian leader, Vladimir Putin.
“This will be a useless dialogue. The truth is that Macron is wasting his time. I have come to the conclusion that we are not in a position to change Russia’s behaviour,” Zelensky told Monday’s edition of the Corriere della Sera newspaper, and two other Italian dailies.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, is expected to make her first visit to Kiev soon.
The far-right politician expressed support for arms deliveries to Ukraine, before her election victory in September last year. In contrast, her two coalition partners, Matteo Salvini of the right-wing League party and Silvio Berlusconi of the conservative Forza Italia, have repeatedly made pro-Russian statements.
Failure in the Russian offensive in Ukraine, is likely to increase tensions within the Russian leadership, according to British intelligence experts in their daily update on the Ukraine war from the Ministry of Defence in London on Monday.
According to the update, Russia remains on the offensive on several fronts, including the eastern Ukrainian towns of Bakhmut and Vuhledar, with heavy losses in some cases.
According to the British, two elite Russian units in Vuhledar have been worn down to such an extent, that they are no longer operational.
The Russian military is under pressure to present successes on the first anniversary of the start of the war on February 24, the assessment continued. However, if the spring offensive fails to achieve anything, British intelligence believe that tensions will likely increase within the Russian leadership.
GNA