| 14-2-24 – Russian President Vladimir Putin’s suggestion for a ceasefire in Ukraine was rejected by the U.S. after contacts between intermediaries, according to claims by Russian sources. Putin reportedly sent signals to Washington in 2023 in public and privately through intermediaries, including through Moscow’s Arab partners in the Middle East and others, that he was ready to consider a ceasefire in Ukraine. In discussions in late 2023 and early 2024, he reportedly proposed to freeze the conflict at the current lines and was unwilling to cede any of the Ukrainian territory controlled by Russia. A second Russian source said that the Americans told Moscow, via the intermediaries, they would not discuss a possible ceasefire without the participation of Ukraine and so the contacts ended in failure. A U.S. source denied there had been any official contact and said Washington would not engage in talks that did not involve Ukraine. The Kremlin also denied today that Putin offered a ceasefire.
Meanwhile, Ukraine claims it has now disabled a third of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet after its military intelligence said it sank another Russian warship in a sea drone attack off the coast of Crimea today. Russia’s landing ship Caesar Kunikov was attacked with “MAGURA” V5 drones that punctured “critical holes” on its left side before sinking, the Ukrainian military intelligence agency said on Telegram. “Ukraine has disabled a third of the Russian Black Sea Fleet during the large-scale invasion,” Ukraine’s armed forces said. That aligns with Ukrainian claims last week that they had disabled about 33% of Russia’s warships, amounting to 24 disabled ships and one submarine. The landing ship Caesar Kunikov would be the 25th disabled ship, according to Ukraine’s count. Today’s attack was conducted by the agency’s “Group 13” special forces unit in cooperation with Ukraine’s security and defense forces, the military statement said. Additionally, Russia’s air defense systems destroyed nine Ukraine-launched drones over Russia’s Belgorod and Voronezh regions, as well as over the Black Sea, the Russian defense ministry said today. Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, said on social media that one woman was hospitalized with injuries as a result of the attack.
Eighteen of the U.S.-led military alliance’s 31 members will meet the target of spending 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense this year, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said today. This includes Germany, Europe’s largest economy, for the first time. Overall, NATO’s European members will spend a record total of $380 billion on defense. “We should not undermine the credibility of NATO’s deterrence,” Stoltenberg said today, issuing a public rebuke to former President Trump, who recently said he would “encourage” Russia to attack any NATO nation that does not meet the target of spending 2% of GDP on defense. “Deterrence is in the mind of our adversaries. We should not leave (any) room of miscalculation or misunderstanding in Moscow about our readiness, our commitment, and our resolve to protect all allies,” Stoltenberg said ahead of a meeting today in Brussels of the alliance’s defense ministers. Reuters, Associated Press, CNN, Financial Times, Euronews
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