Second Phase of Russia’s Operation Underway

Top stories from the Russian press on Thursday, April 21st

© Gavriil Grigorov/TASS

Russia’s representatives handed over to Kiev their draft document "with clear wording", Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday. Since the beginning of April, Russian-Ukrainian talks have made little progress. Meanwhile, Russian officials just announced the start of a new phase of the military operation aimed at the complete liberation of Donbass. Experts told Nezavisimaya Gazeta that the dialogue between the parties should continue even under these conditions, because all conflicts are resolved at the negotiating table.

Judging by the reports of the parties, the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations have been stuck in the mud since the beginning of April. One of the reasons for this could be the Bucha episode outside Kiev. After that, the Ukrainian side changed the original proposals.

On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced the launch of the next phase of Russia's special operation. According to Dmitry Suslov, Deputy Director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at HSE University, the main goal of the new stage will be the complete liberation of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, with the defeat (surrender or withdrawal) of the Ukrainian military group centered near Slavyansk and Kramatorsk. After that, negotiations can restart, and progress will be determined by the outcome of the declared battle for Donbass, Suslov noted.

Andrey Sidorov, Dean of the Faculty of World Politics at Moscow State University, confirmed to Nezavisimaya Gazeta that the talks continue to have an impact on the overall diplomatic situation. And, in particular, they assist India, China, Brazil, and other BRICS members in refuting Western arguments that seek to isolate Russia. Furthermore, in the absence of dialogue, it is impossible to demonstrate the Ukrainian delegates' inability to negotiate, according to the expert.

Sidorov added that European countries that lack an autonomous foreign and defense policy have effectively become an economic appendage of NATO, and that Washington favors a military option. Because the longer this conflict carries on, the wider the distance between the European Union and Russia will be, and the better the likelihood will be to tie Russia's hands, which would help step up pressure on China, according to the expert.

Izvestia: New phase of Ukraine military operation generating results

Russian and Donbass troops continue their offensive during the second stage of the military operation in Ukraine. Military infrastructure is being targeted using high-precision weaponry. According to experts, Mariupol, where militants are still holed up at Azovstal, has already become a secondary trajectory. The chief focus is now concentrated on encircling a major Ukrainian group in Donbass.

Rocket troops and artillery continued massive attacks on the front line and the near rear of the Ukrainian forces, the Russian Defense Ministry said. On the night of April 20, they attacked 1,053 Ukrainian military infrastructure facilities. Consequently, 31 command posts, six warehouses storing fuel and lubricants, 910 strongholds and enemy troop concentration centers, as well as 106 artillery firing positions, were destroyed, the ministry said.

Military expert Vladislav Shurygin spoke to Izvestia about the chances for the second phase of Russia's military special operation in Ukraine. "Mariupol has already devolved into a secondary trajectory. The fate of the remaining Ukrainian group in the area has already been decided. The wiser ones are laying down their arms. The rest are pleading for evacuation," the expert noted. "Now, all attention is focused on encircling and grinding down a major Ukrainian group in the Donbass," he added.

According to Shurygin, the initial results of the second stage are already visible. The front line, which had been rather static for approximately a month, began to shift noticeably. "So far, the push has been very cautious," the analyst noted, adding that "The Russian command has not yet deployed the majority of its forces. They have the ability to build on their success after breaching the first lines of defense."