(Washington) Russia is “executing soldiers” who are trying to retreat from a new bloody offensive in eastern Ukraine where Russian forces have suffered “significant” losses, the White House announced Thursday.
“We have information that the Russian military is executing soldiers who refuse to follow orders,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a press briefing.
“We also have information according to which Russian commanders are threatening to execute entire units if they seek to evade Ukrainian artillery fire,” added this American official without providing further details on these alleged executions and how Washington would have had access to this information.
The industrial city of Avdiïvka, located in Donetsk (eastern Ukraine) has been targeted in recent weeks by intense attacks by Russian troops, who seek to encircle it at the cost of heavy losses according to observers.
Ukrainian positions remain “protected” around this disputed city, but the situation is “difficult” because Russian forces are carrying out numerous assaults, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday.
The Ukrainian authorities also ordered on Thursday the evacuation of children from ten localities located near the town of Kupiansk, in the north-east of the country, where Russian troops have been carrying out an offensive for several months.
Moscow suffered “significant losses” during its offensive, including at least 125 armored vehicles and “thousands” of victims, Mr. Kirby said, without specifying whether these victims were injured or dead.
“The Russian army appears to be using what we would call human wave tactics,” in which hundreds or even thousands of fighters move toward a single point simultaneously, creating a human mass effect that is difficult for rivals to contain. did he declare.
“It is therefore not surprising that the Russian forces are afflicted with poor morale,” argued this official of the National Security Council of the White House, which supports Ukraine militarily against Russia.
Slovakia announces halt to arms deliveries to Ukraine
PHOTO PETR DAVID JOSEK, ASSOCIATED PRESS
“We consider aid to Ukraine only as humanitarian and civil aid, we will no longer supply weapons to Ukraine,” declared the new Slovak Prime Minister, Robert Fico, the day after his appointment as head of a coalition government, including a pro-Russian far-right party.
The new Slovak Prime Minister, Robert Fico, announced on Thursday the cessation of arms deliveries to Ukraine, limiting support for his neighbor to “humanitarian and civil aid”, a first turnaround of this kind on the part Western allies.
“We consider aid to Ukraine only as humanitarian and civil aid, we will no longer provide weapons to Ukraine,” declared Mr. Fico, the day after his appointment as head of a government of coalition, including a pro-Russian far-right party.
Questioned by AFP, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs refused to comment on the announcement.
Until now, Slovakia, a country of 5.4 million inhabitants, has provided strong support to Ukraine, notably delivering combat aircraft – Soviet-designed MiG-29s – and Manpads (portable systems surface-to-air defense) and an anti-aircraft defense system, as well as repairing the weapons used by Ukrainian soldiers.
According to the Kiel Institute, the total value of announced aid, mainly military, amounted to 680 million euros ($760 million) as of July 31.
Slovakia is among the countries which have made the greatest effort in relation to its GDP (0.65%), behind Norway, the Baltic countries, Denmark and Poland.