Russia Ukraine conflict newest: Putin ‘attempting to deflect accountability for army failure’, UK says

New video footage exhibits Putin doubtless attempting to “deflect accountability” for failures and excessive fatality charges the conflict in Ukraine, which he calls his ‘Particular Army Operation’.

Putin visited the Joint Headquarters of the Particular Army Operation on Friday 16 December.

He was filmed assembly with a lot of senior army officers together with Chief of Basic Workers Valery Gerasimov and Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu.

The UK Ministry of Defence mentioned as we speak: “On this choreographed assembly Putin doubtless meant to exhibit collective accountability for the particular army operation.

“This show doubtless aimed to deflect Putin’s accountability for army failure, excessive fatality charges and rising public dissatisfaction from mobilisation. The televised footage was in all probability designed to additionally dispel social media rumours of Basic Gerasimov’s dismissal.”

The British defence ministry has known as Vladimir Putin’s go to to the joint headquarters of the particular army operation choreographed and aimed toward deflecting the Russian president’s accountability for a failure.

“On this choreographed assembly Putin doubtless meant to exhibit collective accountability for the particular army operation,” the ministry mentioned.

It added: “This show doubtless aimed to deflect Putin’s accountability for army failure, excessive fatality charges and rising public dissatisfaction from mobilisation. The televised footage was in all probability designed to additionally dispel social media rumours of basic Gerasimov’s dismissal.”

Mr Putin visited the joint headquarters of the particular army operation on Friday.

He was filmed assembly a lot of senior army officers, together with chief of basic employees Valery Gerasimov and defence minister Sergei Shoigu, the ministry famous.

“He invited proposals for subsequent steps of the particular army operation. Commander of the Russian group of forces in Ukraine, Basic Sergei Surovikin, was a kind of who offered a report,” in keeping with the defence ministry.

Ukraine’s defence minister has mentioned he’ll begin performing on a few of the violations Russia has dedicated in its conflict in opposition to the nation.

“Russia spent a whole bunch of billions of {dollars} on the delusional thought of conquering Ukraine and have become a terrorist state, violating most conventions on the principles of warfare. I’ll focus on a regular basis on a few of these violations,” Oleksiy Reznikov mentioned as we speak.

Studies suggesting Vladimir Putin goes to push Belarus right into a extra lively position in Ukraine conflict are “groundless” and “silly”, the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov mentioned.

“Russia has little interest in absorbing anybody,” Mr Peskov mentioned.

Nonetheless, the US has refuted the claims from Moscow, calling it the “top of irony”.

“The reported declare from president Putin that he has no intention of, as you mentioned, absorbing anybody in his talks with president – with Lukashenka, look, I feel an announcement like that must be handled as the peak of irony coming from a pacesetter who’s in search of at this time second, proper now, to violently take in his different peaceable subsequent door neighbor,” state division spokesperson Ned Worth mentioned final evening.

“We’ve heard these statements from President Putin. On the identical time, because the earliest days of this battle and the weeks previous this battle, we now have seen the Lukashenka regime basically cede its sovereignty, cede its independence to Russia.” he mentioned in a press briefing.

The highest US state division officers mentioned that the world noticed Russian forces “mass inside what ought to have been sovereign Belarusian territory.”

“We’ve seen assaults launched from what must be sovereign Belarusian territory. And now we hear these feedback from president Putin and from Lukashenka, however I feel the monitor document speaks a lot louder than something these two leaders might say,” he mentioned.

Downing Road has rejected options Rishi Sunak is making ready to water down Britain’s assist for Ukraine as “categorically unfaithful”.

The prime minister is in Riga assembly different Western leaders to debate the war-torn nation.

However reviews he has requested for an evaluation of the progress of the conflict and the way UK army provides are getting used led should fears the Conservative chief was taking an excessively cautious strategy.

His official spokesman mentioned: “Definitely any suggestion of watered down assist for Ukraine is categorically unfaithful.

Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered the strengthening of his coutry’s borders and instructed safety providers to step up defences in opposition to “traitors, spies and saboteurs”, in keeping with state media.

Studies additionally mentioned that Mr Putin informed the Federal Safety Bureau (FSB) it should shield individuals within the Ukrainian areas claimed by Russia in September, promising brokers “trendy gear and weapons” for the trigger.

“[The border] should be reliably lined,” the RIA information company quoted him as saying. “Any makes an attempt to violate it should be thwarted rapidly and successfully utilizing no matter forces and means we now have at our disposal, together with cellular motion models and particular forces.”

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The White Home will proceed to observe Russia’s actions in Ukraine amid Vladimir Putin’s go to to Belarus, spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre mentioned.

“Look, we proceed to observe Russia’s drive posture carefully. That’s one thing that we now have been doing and can proceed to do, together with a Belarus – in Belarus, and stay in shut contact with Ukraine as they valiantly defend themselves in opposition to Russia aggression. So we’re persevering with to try this,” the highest White Home official mentioned in a press briefing final evening.

She was answering the query on the Biden administration’s issues that there could be extra collaboration between the 2 nations as Mr Putin visited his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko and if Minsk could also be offering extra army assist to Russia.

Ms Jean-Pierre mentioned the US has lengthy been involved by Belarus’s position in Russia’s aggression. “Belarus has enabled Russia’s conflict in opposition to Ukraine, offering assist for Russia and permitting Belarusian territory for use as a staging floor for Russian forces,” she informed the reporters.

Vladimir Putin is in Belarus alongside together with his defence and overseas ministers, as fears develop in Kyiv that Moscow needs to push its closest ally into a brand new floor offensive in Ukraine.

Sitting alongside Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko earlier than their talks in Minsk, Mr Putin is alleged to have emphasised the shut military-technical ties between the allies.

Mr Putin was allowed to make use of Belarus because the launchpad for his offensive in opposition to Kyiv when the invasion of Ukraine started in February – though Lukashenko has repeatedly mentioned his nation, which depends closely on Moscow for assist, won’t enter the conflict given how unpopular such a transfer might show in his nation.

Ukrainian joint forces commander Serhiy Nayev had mentioned he believed the talks would tackle “additional aggression in opposition to Ukraine and the broader involvement of the Belarusian armed forces within the operation in opposition to Ukraine, particularly, in our opinion, additionally on the bottom”.

The Worldwide Financial Fund has authorised a four-month programme for Ukraine to assist the besieged nation preserve its financial stability utilizing donor financing after Russia invaded it in February.

The Program Monitoring with Board involvement (PMB) was cleared by the IMF’s administration on 9 December and mentioned by its govt board yesterday. The IMF will assist Ukraine implement prudent insurance policies and “catalyse” exterior financing..

“Massive and predictable exterior monetary assist will probably be crucial for the success of the authorities technique, and frontloaded disbursements would assist tackle strains in early 2023,” IMF first deputy managing director Gita Gopinath mentioned in an announcement.

“On the identical time, the PMB seeks to advertise transparency and protect hard-won positive aspects from previous fund-supported applications, together with within the areas of independence of the Nationwide Financial institution of Ukraine and, extra broadly, governance and anti-corruption,” Ms Gopinath mentioned.

Jap city Bakhmut continued to be the new spots of the conflict with Russian and Ukrainian forces defending inches of land within the virtually 11 month previous siege, Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned, addind that Vladimir Putin has misplaced round 99,000 troopers thus far.

“Bakhmut is the most popular spot on your complete frontline – greater than 1300 km of lively hostilities. Since Might, the occupiers have been attempting to interrupt our Bakhmut, however time goes by and Bakhmut is already breaking not solely the Russian military, but in addition the Russian mercenaries who got here to interchange the wasted military of the occupiers,” he mentioned in his nightly tackle.

Mr Zelensky added: “Simply give it some thought: Russia has already misplaced virtually 99 thousand of its troopers in Ukraine. Quickly there will probably be 100 thousand of the occupiers’ casualties. For what? Nobody in Moscow can reply this query. They usually received’t.”

“They wage conflict and waste individuals’s lives, different individuals’s lives, not of their family members, not their very own lives, however the lives of others solely as a result of a gaggle within the Kremlin can’t admit errors and is extremely afraid of actuality. However actuality speaks for itself,” the war-time president mentioned.