Latest news with #territorialclaims
Russia Today
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Kiev can't retake lost regions
Kiev should abandon its ambition to regain control over the territories it has lost to Russia, Valery Zaluzhny, the former commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, has said. Only through a 'miracle' could Ukraine achieve such a goal, according to the general. 'I hope that there are no people in this hall who are still hoping for some miracle… that will bring peace to Ukraine and will bring back the borders of 1991 or 2022,' the former commander, who currently serves as Kiev's ambassador to London, told a Ukrainian defense export forum on Thursday. Zaluzhny was referring to Kiev's territorial claims on Crimea and the four former Ukrainian regions that have since joined Russia. Crimea voted to return to Russia in the wake of the Western-backed Maidan coup in Kiev in 2014, and the two Donbass republics, as well as Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, followed suit in autumn 2022 following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February of that year. Kiev has never recognized the referendums' results and continues to claim sovereignty over the regions. According to Zaluzhny, Kiev is locked in a 'war of attrition' with Moscow, and Russia still has the resources to strike at Ukrainian targets and conduct offensive operations. Ukraine faces 'a tremendous shortage of human resources and… a catastrophic economic situation,' the retired general warned. Under such circumstances, Ukraine can only wage a 'high-tech war of survival,' where it should strive to use 'minimal resources' to achieve 'maximum' results, Zaluzhny maintained. He said that the country 'is not capable' of waging any other type of war and 'should not even think about it.' Zaluzhny's remarks come amid continued Russian advances on the front line. In late April, Moscow's troops fully liberated Kursk Region on the Ukrainian border, driving out Kiev's forces that had occupied some areas there last year. Over the past seven days alone, the Russian military has taken control of six settlements, including four villages in the Donetsk People's Republic, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Last week, Moscow and Kiev also sat down for the first direct peace talks in some three years, after President Vladimir Putin suggested resuming the process without any preconditions. The two sides are now expected to exchange draft peace proposals, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Russia Today
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Former top general pours cold water on Kiev's ambitions
Kiev should abandon its ambition to regain control over the territories it has lost to Russia, Valery Zaluzhny, the former commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, has said. Only through a 'miracle' could Ukraine achieve such a goal, according to the general. 'I hope that there are no people in this hall who are still hoping for some miracle… that will bring peace to Ukraine and will bring back the borders of 1991 or 2022,' the former commander, who currently serves as Kiev's ambassador to London, told a Ukrainian defense export forum on Thursday. Zaluzhny was referring to Kiev's territorial claims on Crimea and the four former Ukrainian regions that have since joined Russia. Crimea voted to return to Russia in the wake of the Western-backed Maidan coup in Kiev in 2014, and the two Donbass republics, as well as Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, followed suit in autumn 2022 following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February of that year. Kiev has never recognized the referendums' results and continues to claim sovereignty over the regions. According to Zaluzhny, Kiev is locked in a 'war of attrition' with Moscow, and Russia still has the resources to strike at Ukrainian targets and conduct offensive operations. Ukraine faces 'a tremendous shortage of human resources and… a catastrophic economic situation,' the retired general warned. Under such circumstances, Ukraine can only wage a 'high-tech war of survival,' where it should strive to use 'minimal resources' to achieve 'maximum' results, Zaluzhny maintained. He said that the country 'is not capable' of waging any other type of war and 'should not even think about it.' Zaluzhny's remarks come amid continued Russian advances on the front line. In late April, Moscow's troops fully liberated Kursk Region on the Ukrainian border, driving out Kiev's forces that had occupied some areas there last year. Over the past seven days alone, the Russian military has taken control of six settlements, including four villages in the Donetsk People's Republic, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Last week, Moscow and Kiev also sat down for the first direct peace talks in some three years, after President Vladimir Putin suggested resuming the process without any preconditions. The two sides are now expected to exchange draft peace proposals, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
South China Morning Post
14-05-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
China reasserts India border claims with fresh list of ‘standard' place names
China has reasserted its territorial claims near its contested border with India by releasing 'standard' names for dozens of places in the region – most of them in Indian-controlled territory. Despite recent efforts to improve diplomatic ties with its Southeast Asian neighbour, the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs published its latest names for places in Arunachal Pradesh , which China calls Zangnan, and says is part of the Tibetan autonomous region. The renaming of 27 places covered a diverse array of geographical features: 15 mountains, five residential areas, four mountain passes, two rivers and one lake. After India and Pakistan trade blows over Kashmir, will their ceasefire hold? After India and Pakistan trade blows over Kashmir, will their ceasefire hold? Each location was assigned names in Chinese characters, Tibetan, and pinyin – the romanised spelling of Mandarin Chinese – and accompanied by detailed latitude and longitude coordinates, and a high-resolution map. 'In accordance with the relevant provisions of the State Council [China's cabinet] on the management of geographical names, we in conjunction with the relevant departments have standardised some of the geographical names in Zangnan of China,' the ministry said. The move comes despite efforts in the past year to improve relations between the two countries after a long period of tension. A deadly military clash in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh in 2020 sent relations into a tailspin. Twenty Indian soldiers and four Chinese personnel were killed in the encounter and there has been a military stand-off at the shared border ever since. The following year, another border skirmish in Sikkim state left troops on both sides wounded. However, late last year China and India agreed to end their military stand-off at the Himalayan border.
