Explaining complex things in simple words: prospects of the military and political situation in Ukraine, situation at Zaporizhzhia NPP, military targets

PROSPECTS OF THE MILITARY AND POLITICAL SITUATION IN UKRAINE

In an interview with Bild, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy outlined the main prospects for the development of the military-political situation in Ukraine.

The Defence Forces are preparing to deter the enemy, in particular, the defense of Kharkiv is being enhanced.

We are fighting for victory. Ukraine is not only defending itself, but also has plans for a counteroffensive.

To implement the plans, Ukraine needs Western weapons (F-16 aircraft, ATACMS, Taurus missiles, etc.). Russia has a quantitative advantage in weapons and human resources; however, Ukraine is able to gain a qualitative, including technological, advantage.

Obviously, the reason for providing Ukraine with an insufficient number of modern weapons and ammunition is political motivation, not technical inability.

Ukraine heeds all international initiatives aimed at ending the war and seeks to once again emphasize that the current military circumstances and aggressive steps of Russia do not give grounds for initiating negotiations with it.

SITUATION AT ZAPORIZHZHIA NPP

On April 7-9, other Russian provocations with the use of UAVs on the territory of the ZNPP were recorded.

Ukraine is not involved in any armed provocations at the Russia-occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP. We are dealing with Russian attacks, in particular imitation attacks aimed at discrediting the Defence Forces.

The Russian occupation army, which controls the ZNPP, deliberately and gradually worsens the security situation at Europe's largest nuclear.

Regular loss of external power supply and low qualification of Rosatom personnel, who, as of now, are trying to illegally "manage" the facility, may sooner or later cause a disaster at the ZNPP.

The seizure, militarization, and continued occupation of the ZNPP by Russia pose unprecedented threats to the nuclear security of not only Ukraine, but also the whole of Europe and the world.

The existing mechanisms of nuclear deterrence of Russia have proved ineffective. The world must take a decisive stance to prevent the aggressor from implementing criminal scenarios, as well as to strengthen the sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation.

MILITARY TARGETS

Lloyd Austin, U.S. Secretary of Defense, said that, instead of targeting oil refineries, "Ukraine is better served in going after tactical and operational targets that can directly influence the current fight."

Ukraine appreciates the expert recommendations of the allies, and it considers the objective realities of the Russian-Ukrainian war.

The situation on the contact line cannot be fundamentally improved without an increase in the number of weapons and ammunition and the uninterrupted supply of them by the allies. Unfortunately, the flow of military assistance is sometimes slowed down or blocked.

Russian refineries are legitimate military targets, as they are a source of financing and material support for Russian aggression against Ukraine. Ukraine only reacts symmetrically to the enemy's continuous attempts to destroy Ukraine's energy system.

Western weapons are not needed to attack Russian refineries. Ukraine applies exclusively its own developments of unmanned aircraft, strictly adhering to its agreements with foreign partners.

Center for Strategic Communication and Information Security.