Russia believes it is “close” to achieving its strategic goals in Ukraine, Moscow’s spy chief has claimed.
Sergey Naryshkin, the politician in charge of the Kremlin’s Foreign Intelligence Service (FIS), has insisted that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine was going well, and that Ukrainian defensive efforts were on the verge of failure.
“The situation on the front is not in Kyiv’s favour,” he told a local Russian magazine, according to Reuters on December 10.
“The strategic initiative in all areas belongs to us, we are close to achieving our goals, while the armed forces of Ukraine are on the verge of collapse.”
He added that Kyiv itself no longer had “the ability to negotiate” due to an alleged loss of legitimacy brought about by the country’s President Volodymyr Zelensky-led administration’s military struggles.
The head of the FIS organisation, the successor to the KGB, has reportedly often been used as a window into the Kremlin’s thinking by foreign officials, with Naryshkin said to be regularly in communication with his Western counterparts.
His recent statements on the war were little different to those made by the Kremlin’s official spokesman Dmitry Peskov on December 10.
Unlike the spymaster, Peskov was insistent that peace negotiations remained a possibility, although he accused Ukraine of preventing them from taking place.
“The special military operation will end when all the objectives set by the president and commander-in-chief have been achieved,” Peskov told reporters during a press briefing.
“These goals can be achieved as a result of the special military operation or a result of relevant negotiations,” he added, insisting that “the Ukrainian side refuses any negotiations”.
Russian deputy defence minister Anna Tsivilyova has unintentionally shared figures relating to missing soldiers likely killed in the Ukraine war. https://t.co/ZHrW7VUcOa
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) December 5, 2024
Russia has repeatedly tried to blame Ukraine in recent months for the continuation of the war, redoubling its efforts to mark Kyiv as propelling the conflict since the re-election of US President-elect Donald Trump in November.
The incoming US leader is viewed by Moscow as less hawkish than his predecessor, outgoing President Joe Biden, having repeatedly called for a ceasefire in the region.
“I know Vladimir well. This is his time to act,” Trump wrote in his latest December 8 plea for peace published on social media.
“China can help. The World is waiting!”
Zelensky has at the same time been pushing for Trump to use the weight of the US to help bring the conflict to a close, describing the Republican as being one of the few people Russia feared.
“I told President Trump that Putin fears only him and, perhaps, China,” Zelensky said on December 9.
“We know that America has the capacity to accomplish remarkable things — things that others have not been able to achieve.”
“To succeed in ending this war, we need unity — the unity of America, Europe and everyone in the world who values security — as well as strong positions and guarantees for peace,” he added.
Vanuatu has been handing out passports to Russian nationals since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, EU records show. https://t.co/t4nrWGrhhG
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) December 9, 2024
