As Russian forces continued to press Ukrainian positions in the Donetsk region, the frontline situation remained "extremely acute," Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address on Friday.
"The situation at the front, and in particular in the Donetsk region — near Bakhmut and Vuhledar, remains extremely acute," Zelenskyy said. "The occupiers are not just storming our positions — they are deliberately and methodically destroying these towns and villages around them."
This invasion is an egregious violation of international law. Putin's ultimate aim is to restore the Soviet empire, even if it takes massive bloodshed and false pretexts such as calling the 2014 Ukrainian revolution after an election a "coup." This unprovoked attack is the latest chapter in Putin's Orwellian attempt to rewrite history.
NATO and the US have ignored Russia's security concerns by breaking its promise not to expand eastward in return for German reunification. These concerns are legitimate, and taking them seriously would have avoided the Ukraine tragedy.