Pentagon. File photoWASHINGTON, Apr 22 The US does not expect the fighting in Ukraine to end in the coming days or weeks, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Friday. «We do not expect this to end in in the coming days or even weeks. We believe that the potential for hostilities could last longer,» Kirby said during the briefing. He added that the agency does not have a specific forecast as to how long the clashes in Ukraine will continue. The Pentagon representative added that violence in Ukraine could be ended «today» if the Russian leadership «went into good faith negotiations with Vladimir Zelensky “Obviously, Russian President Vladimir Putin has no intention of doing this. I understand that. However, this does not change the fact that the war must be ended immediately,” Kirby added. Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to bullying and genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years.» For this, according to him, it is planned to carry out «demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine», to bring to justice all war criminals responsible for «bloody crimes against civilians» in Donbass. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces strike only at military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops and , on March 25, completed the main tasks of the first stage — significantly reduced the combat potential of Ukraine. The main goal in the Russian military department was called the liberation of Donbass.
