Russian media outlets ordered not to talk about 100 days of war against Ukraine: Report

Russian state media outlets have been ordered to not discuss the fact that Friday, June 3 marks the 100 days since Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the “special” military operation in Ukraine, according to a report by Latvia-based outlet, Medusa which cited a source in Russian presidential administration among others. As Russia failed to achieve most of its goals in Ukraine since February 24, when the conflict started, Kremlin is concerned that highlighting how long Putin’s war has lasted will show the country in an unpleasant light.

The media outlet’s unnamed source was quoted as saying, “Focusing on dates related to the war can make Russians think about the goals and success of the invasion."

“When talking about a round date, questions always arise: what has been achieved by this date?" they added. 

The latest report follows Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Mark Milley telling Congress in February that Ukraine was expected to fall roughly 72 hours after Russia launched a  military offensive. The popular opinion among lawmakers and world leaders circulating before the beginning of the war was that Putin’s forces would crush Ukrainian troops on the ground and would easily conquer the former Soviet Union country. However, Ukraine’s resistance has now lasted for 100 days with the war raging unabated for over three months. 

US 'not seeing any sign' of an end to Russia-Ukraine war

Earlier,  United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the conflict will last “many more months” based on the current situation. During a press briefing on Wednesday, the top US diplomat said that Washington can not predict how the situation in Ukraine would play out but added that right now, the war appears to continue for several more months. Blinken went on to say that the war could end “tomorrow if Russia chose to end the aggression. We don’t see any signs of that right now.”  

The US Secretary of Defence said, “With regard to timelines, the secretary-general said it well.  We can’t predict how this is going to play out, when this is going to play out.  As best we can assess right now, we are still looking at many months of conflict.”

Image: AP