According to Volodymyr Zelensky, a “just peace” can be achieved on condition that the West, led by the United States and Great Britain, allows Kiev to strike Russian territory with long-range missiles. This green light, however, continues not to arrive, admitted the Ukrainian leader himself, who is preparing to fly to New York to plead this cause more forcefully with allied leaders and not only: Zelensky will meet Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, probably Donald Trump, and will have the stage of the UN General Assembly at his disposal. His horizon is a new peace conference in November, this time with Moscow, from which, however, a cold shower has arrived: he will not participate. London and Washington “are afraid of an escalation,” Zelensky regretfully told international mediatalking about the cruise missile taboo. The Ukrainian leader will try again in the coming days, especially with the Americans. Joe Biden “can earn a place in history by “strengthening Ukraine” before leaving office. Furthermore, he has already “changed his mind” in the past, and some members of his entourage have argued that the OK must be given, which “is already an achievement”, Zelensky noted. In the United States, in addition to the outgoing president and Harris, he should also meet with Trump, between Thursday and Friday. The tycoon is notoriously colder with Kiev, but for now the Ukrainian leader is aiming to have “time” with the Republican candidate. The long-range missile game remains complicated, especially since even the EU does not want to further provoke Moscow. This is Berlin’s position, for example, in fact Chancellor Olaf Scholz reiterated that “it will not deliver military vehicles that can reach Moscow”, like the Taurus. And Rome is on the same line, considering that any action that opens a direct front between Moscow and NATO must be avoided. The use of Atacms and Storm Shadows to strike in Russia is an integral part of the “victory plan” that the Ukrainian president will present to the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.
Russia rejects peace summit
No details have emerged so far, but from what has emerged, Zelensky’s initiative aims to obtain new security guarantees, more weapons and economic support for Kiev. A concrete plan, unlike the “too vague” one presented by China and Brazil in the spring, estimated the Ukrainian leader, who considers the two countries too close to Putin. Kiev, after the conference in Switzerland, now wants to involve Moscow, to actually bring about the end of hostilities. An arduous undertaking, because in the evening Russia has said it has no plans to attend the summit scheduled for November. Promoting the “unworkable Zelensky formula” would be “an ultimatum on our capitulation”, said the spokeswoman for diplomacy Maria Zakharova. If Russia decides to negotiate one day, Ukraine would put on the table the withdrawal from the occupied territories beyond the border, Zelensky implied. Meanwhile, its armed forces reported having destroyed “thousands of tons of ammunition, including from North Korea” in two depots in Krasnodar. A blow apparently successful, because the regional governor has ordered the evacuation of over a thousand residents from the area. These operations on Russian territory are defined by the Ukrainians as defensive, at a time when the invading troops continue to gain ground in Donetsk, threatening the important logistics center of Pokrovsk: the Army is only about ten kilometers away. Kiev also believes that the enemy has planned new attacks on nuclear power plants, to further compromise the energy network in view of the winter. The risk, when a nuclear plant is involved, is of an accident with “serious” consequences, warned Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha. Sharing intelligence information with the IAEA and allies.