Russia has not met its objective in Ukraine, can get a big defeat: EU Foreign Affairs Min

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell stated on Thursday that Russia has no interest in negotiating a ceasefire with Ukraine for the time being because its army has not met its military objectives. During an interview with a Spanish TVE channel, he stated that right now Russia does not want to sit down and negotiate anything and that it wants to occupy the ground.

"The Russian army tried to conquer Kyiv quickly and now they are massacring people. From a military point of view, this is a big failure for Russia. One month fighting, and they have not been able to move 200km away from their logistical bases. And since they cannot conquer the cities, they bomb the cities, killing innocent people and destroying everything," Borrell said.

"But the Ukrainians are fighting, we are supporting them, providing arms. And certainly, the result of the war is not what the Kremlin expected. They can have a big defeat," he added.

Borrell further claimed that Russia seeks to isolate Ukraine from the sea by encircling the coast to the Moldovan border. It only wants to start serious negotiations once it has established a strong position in the country. He claimed that despite Russia's action, the European Union and its allies will continue to provide military assistance to the Ukrainian army. He also stated that the time is crucial now because everything will be decided in the next 15 days.

EU 'need to keep backing Ukraine's troops'

He stated that all the EU needs to do now is keep backing Ukraine's troops and continue to send arms, and equip the troops. He claimed that it is crucial to ensure that these items are available in Ukraine and that people can use them to fight the Russians, according to a press release shared by the European External Action Service. Talking about the sanctions on Russia, the EU diplomat stated that he expects instructions from the European Union Council on how to continue to increase sanctions on Russia, both personal and sectoral measures.

In his recent tweet, Borrell said that Russia will be held accountable for its action in Ukraine.

Earlier, he had said that the Russian attacks on Mariupol, a besieged Ukrainian city, are a "major war crime." He went on to say that indiscriminately demolishing everything, bombing and killing everyone is something awful, according to DW News. Since the beginning of the invasion, the port city of Mariupol has been under siege by Russian soldiers.

More than a thousand people have been killed so far

Russian President Vladimir Putin has dispatched troops to Ukraine on February 24 in a special military operation aimed at demilitarising the country. Russia had claimed that the civilians are safe in Ukraine and that they are only attacking military bases. The United Nations Human Rights' office stated that more than a thousand people have been killed so far.

Image: AP