Moscow [Russia], September 3: Ukraine predicts that Russia is about to launch a new major offensive, while Russian President Vladimir Putin has not reached an agreement with US President Donald Trump on a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
As of yesterday (September 2), the Russia- Ukraine conflict has lasted nearly 1,290 days with no signs of cooling down, despite US President Donald Trump's efforts to end the conflict.
New developments on the ground
The Russian Defense Ministry announced yesterday that air defense units destroyed 13 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the sky over Russia's Rostov region on the night of September 1 and the early morning of September 2, according to TASS news agency. Rostov's acting governor Yuri Slyusar also wrote on the Telegram messaging app that 320 people were evacuated from their apartments overnight after a Ukrainian UAV attack on the city of Rostov-on-Don.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Air Force claimed to have intercepted 120 of the 150 UAVs launched by Russia on the night of September 1 and early morning of September 2, according to The Kyiv Independent . In addition, officials in eight Ukrainian provinces yesterday morning alleged that Russian attacks in the previous 24 hours had killed at least eight civilians and injured 29 others.
Dmytro Zaporozhets, a spokesman for Ukraine's 11th Army Corps, said on September 1 that Russia would launch new attacks on the city of Siversk in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine to establish a strong position in the region, according to The Kyiv Independent . "In the Siversk direction, the enemy will continue to carry out offensive operations with heavy equipment until the autumn rains begin. We expect another large-scale attack," Zaporozhets said.
Zaporozhets also predicted that Russian forces aimed to gain a position near Siversk before the weather changed, allowing them to fight for control of the city during the winter. He also said that the number of Russian artillery strikes in the direction of the city of Lyman (in Donetsk Oblast) had increased from 80-90 to 200 per day. He said that the increased shelling north of Siversk was allowing Russian forces to advance by using artillery to destroy Ukrainian positions.
Peace talks are difficult
Speaking on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in China on September 1, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said that President Putin has not yet reached an agreement with President Trump on a trilateral or bilateral meeting with President Zelensky. TASS quoted Mr. Ushakov as saying that the Russia-Ukraine conflict was the main topic of President Putin's talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the SCO summit.
Speaking at the Bled Strategic Forum in Slovenia from September 1-2, US Permanent Representative to NATO Matthew Whitaker said it would be naive to expect Washington's diplomatic intervention to quickly end the Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to TASS. Mr. Whitaker affirmed that Washington does not have any influence to force the conflicting parties to immediately end hostilities. However, the US will continue to make efforts to establish lasting peace in Ukraine, according to Mr. Whitaker.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron's office announced on September 1 that the country will host an online meeting on September 4 with about 30 countries to discuss their latest efforts to provide security assistance to Ukraine after reaching a peace deal with Russia. The upcoming meeting will review recent plans by military leaders and send a message that there has been no progress since President Trump met with President Putin on August 15 on holding direct talks between President Putin and President Zelensky, according to Reuters citing diplomats.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
