The President of the Republic predicted this Wednesday that the coming months will be a “decisive period” for the war in Ukraine, with the two actors aiming for autumn in strength.
Speaking to reporters at Picadeiro Real in Lisbon, shortly after receiving the Joint Operational Forces (FOCON) on a mission to Turkey, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza was asked about the first year of the war in Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022. .
The head of state predicted that the coming weeks would be a “decisive period” in the conflict as “the thaw resumes”, making possible “a classic battle on the ground, namely with tanks”.
“What will happen is whether Ukraine will be able – and it will try by all means – to regain what it lost after the invasion a year ago, and the Russian Federation to keep what it occupied over the past year,” he predicted.
The President of the Republic assured that the coming months would be “decisive”, stressing that both Russia and Ukraine wanted to arrive right now, “at the end of summer, in autumn” to “measure positions on the ground and see if they would be either stronger or weaker” and to understand “how much room it has for a longer war, or is it already in a position to take the path to peace.”
“Now everything will be played out in the coming months,” he stressed.
When asked if he expects at least another six months of war, the head of state replied: “Without a doubt, these will be long months and these will be very important months, because both of them can gain a lot and lose a lot.”
“Ukraine will be strongly supported by NATO, the US and Europe, and the Russian Federation is trying to support the People’s Republic of China, at least in principle,” he warned.
Marcelo Rebelo de Souza also said that there have been “very busy days” this week with United States President Joe Biden’s “historic visit” to Kiev and with “a speech by the leader of Russia, Vladimir Putin.
According to the analysis of the President of the Republic, each of them used “their strong arguments”, while Biden emphasized that he would be on the side of Ukraine “for as long as necessary”, and Putin adhered to “a possible position that he had, namely Russia from nuclear arms control treaties.
“Doesn’t mean that [Putin] the intention to use nuclear weapons was the argument he had at hand to show his reaction to the firm position of the President of North America, ”he believed.
Regarding Portugal’s attitude to the conflict, Marcelo recalled that the country had decided to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, take part in the training of Ukrainian soldiers and “supply more ammunition.”
“What it can provide, and what it can provide within NATO, Portugal is doing. Now NATO is known to avoid intervention in the theater of operations, ”recalled Marcelo.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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