During a radio interview, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Serhiy Lavrov announced Russia’s intention to capture the city of Kharkiv.
About this reported American Institute for the Study of War ISW.
Analysts note that Lavrov became the first high-ranking official of the Kremlin to directly call Kharkiv “a possible operational target of Russia.”
“Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has announced Russia’s intention to seize the city of Kharkiv in an upcoming major Russian offensive, becoming the first senior Kremlin official to directly name the city as a possible Russian operational target following recent warnings from Ukraine that Russian forces may try to seize city, starting from the summer of 2024.” – the message says.
According to Lavrov, Kharkiv plays an important role” in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s idea of creating a demilitarized “sanitary zone” in Ukraine to protect Russian border settlements from Ukrainian attacks.
ISW notes that this requirement is very vague and may even extend to the entire territory of Ukraine – as long as there is an independent Ukrainian state and it will defend itself. According to ISW, Lavrov’s statements indicate that the Kremlin is likely to use the idea of a constantly changing demilitarized sanitary zone to justify Russian offensive operations in Ukraine.
