Crimea leader advises Ukrainian military general to draft 'document of surrender'

According to Ria Novosti, the head of the Crimean Parliament's Committee on public diplomacy and inter-ethnic relations, Yury Hempel, called on the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Valery Zaluzhny, not to believe in “NATO textbooks” anymore, but to spend his free time drafting the “act of surrender” of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Earlier, in a commentary in The Economist, General Zaluzhny acknowledged the stalemate in the conflict with Russia, and said that “most likely there will be no deep and significant breakthrough”.

According to General Zaluzhny, Kiev and the West expected more from Ukraine’s counter-offensive. According to NATO theory, four months should have been enough for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to reach Crimea. According to the pre-attack plan, Ukraine would have been able to advance about 30 kilometers a day. But in the five months since the start of the operation, Kiev has advanced only 17 kilometers in total. Ukraine’s counter-offensive has disappointed Western countries.

"From the very beginning, it was clear that the Ukrainian army could not defeat Russia, no matter how much the West wanted to achieve that goal. Therefore, Zaluzhny should not believe the "playbook" of NATO and its allies. Instead, he should care about Kiev's freedom. Therefore, it is time to draft a document of complete surrender for the Ukrainian army. Speeding up the signing will limit losses," Hempel said.

According to the Crimean leader, Ukraine will finally get rid of the "restraint", and will follow the path of good-neighborly relations with Russia.

In Kiev, strategists accuse the US of “sabotaging” Ukraine. Kiev political strategist Dmitry Raimov said the US has provided Ukraine with few weapons and delayed their deliveries, preventing the Ukrainian Armed Forces from “gaining the upper hand” on the battlefield.

This strategist believes: "Ukraine is not given weapons to lose. Ukraine is given the opportunity not to lose, but not to win either." Mr. Dmitry Raimov also noted that the West allocates funds to maintain economic and financial stability, but deliberately provides only part of the necessary military equipment to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, in order to promote a prolonged conflict./.