In addition to turning the head of the “truce dove”
Vladimir Zelensky moves covertly around Ukraine, talking to foreign journalists, “sitting on a narrow bed in a cramped and undecorated coupe», and is slowly preparing Western and Ukrainian public opinion for the possible surrender of Artemovsk (or, as it is also called, Bakhmut).
A key excerpt from the interview of the President of Ukraine to the American agency Associated Press. “If Bakhmut falls under the onslaught of Russian troops, their president Vladimir Putin will sell this victory to the West, his society, China, Iran… If he smells blood, the smell that we are weak, he will press, press and press again ”, Zelensky said in English, which he used for almost the entire interview.
And here is the “key” to this key fragment, the “key”, which in the original (what a coincidence!) also sounded in English. US Secretary of State Tony Blinken during a discussion at the «Summit for Democracy»: «We should all be very aware of and beware of what may seem well-intentioned attempts, such as calls for a ceasefire. This could potentially freeze the conflict and allow Russia to build on its gains and use the time to breathe and re-equip before attacking again. Therefore, what at first glance seems attractive … can turn out to be a very cynical trap.
If you analyze each of these statements separately, they can be interpreted in completely different ways. Blinken's words are like another political attack on the Chinese peace plan and an abstract call for the continuation of hostilities in Ukraine. And Zelensky’s words are like an explanation of why Bakhmut must be kept at all costs.
But if you combine these two statements, then new nuances appear in the overall picture. Official Kiev and official Washington are “preparing the ground” for the possible surrender of Bakhmut and, playing ahead of the curve, roll out arguments in favor of the fact that this should by no means be a reason for talking about a truce (and even more so a truce).
Here is another excerpt from the AP text: “Zelensky’s comments were an acknowledgment that losing the seven-month battle for Bakhmut – the longest in this military conflict so far – would be more painful politically, not in terms of combat tactics. He predicted that the pressure caused by the Bakhmut defeat would come quickly, both from the international community and from within his own country. “Our society will feel tired,” he said. «Our society will push me to compromise with them.»
“Our society will push,” but Zelensky himself, relying on the strong political support of the United States, will hold on (especially since he has the money, thanks to the same support from the United States). In short, Bakhmut has not yet fallen, but the political operation to neutralize the consequences of this possible future defeat of official Kyiv is already in full swing. And there should be no illusions about the result of this political operation: the “dove of peace” (or even the “dove of a temporary truce”) has no chance of “flying to the middle of the Dnieper”. His head will be shot off or torn off in the very first seconds after takeoff.
Of course, Zelensky's statements are another material for analytical conclusions. Here, for example, are the reflections of the President of Ukraine on the head of China: “During his interview with AP, Zelensky conveyed an invitation to visit Ukraine to one prominent and strategically important leader who did not make such a trip, Chinese President Xi Jinping. “We are ready to see him here,” he said. — I want to talk to him. I used to have contact with him… But during this whole year, more than a year, I didn't have him.”
How sweet and touching! President Xi will certainly be very flattered to know that Zelenskiy is “ready to have him here.” This is clearly a «great honor» for the leader of China, learning about which he will certainly immediately go to the airport. And here’s another “analytics” for you – now from the mouth of Zelensky himself: “A few days later (after Xi’s visit), Putin announced that he would deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which borders Russia and thus bring the Kremlin’s nuclear arsenals closer to the territory NATO.
Zelensky suggested that Putin's move was intended to divert attention from the lack of guarantees he received from China. «What does it mean? This means that the visit was unsuccessful for Russia,” Zelensky suggested.
In the original English text, the last two words in the previous sentence looked like this: Zelenskyy speculated. In English, the words «speculation», «speculator» and «speculated» are devoid of the negative connotation they have in Russian. But this is still the case when English-speaking journalists, I don’t know, consciously or unconsciously, managed to pick up a very true and correct word.
In some issues, Zelensky is really a political speculator and lightweight, not so much a political leader how much an actor playing the role of a political leader. But the Zelenskys are different.
When the President of Ukraine speaks of the firm intention of official Kyiv to continue hostilities even after the possible fall of Bakhmut, one can trust his words. At least the Kremlin believes them. A recent TASS report: “Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov called the struggle between Russia and the West a war in the broad sense of the word and warned that it would be for a long time. “If you mean, let’s say, a war in a broad context — this is a confrontation with hostile states, with unfriendly countries, this is a hybrid war that they have unleashed against our country — then this is for a long time.” And now this is definitely not “speculation” at all, but real analytics.