Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that Russia was “creating new divisions” and expanding the number of weapons and equipment manufacturing facilities, suggesting Moscow had little desire to enter into peace talks with Kyiv.
Why It Matters
Donald Trump returned to power in November, pledging to end Europe’s biggest land conflict since World War II in just 24 hours, but since his inauguration on January 20, he has been unable to broker a US-brokered ceasefire deal for Ukraine but has signaled that efforts are underway to bring both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin into talks.
What To Know
Trump told the New York Post on Saturday that he had spoken with Putin. And earlier in the week, he said he would likely meet with Zelenskyy in Ukraine soon.
President Zelenskyy said on Saturday (February 8) that Ukrainian intelligence reports “confirm that Russia is forming new departments and building new military production facilities.”
Sergei Shoigu, Russia’s former defense minister who served from 2012 to 2024, said in early 2023 that Russia would build up its armed forces, creating 14 new divisions by the end of 2024.
The Institute for the Study of War, an American research group and advocacy think tank, said on Saturday that it was unclear whether Zelenskyy’s comments referred to Shoigu’s comments.
Zelenskyy said that Russia is now increasing its army by more than 100,000 soldiers. It shows that Russia does not want to end the nearly three-year war with Ukraine but to continue the military push and not just against Ukraine.
In the ongoing war with Ukraine, in September 2024, Putin said that Russia’s army would increase by 180,000 soldiers.That would bring the Army’s total to 1.5 million active-duty soldiers.
Russia builds its military in a number of ways, the most notable of which is the draft army; most soldiers are drafted, and the army usually serves for about a year. Second is the contract soldier; many sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense to join this army, which basically means they choose to work for a long period of time under this contract. The third way is the reservist, which means that there are soldiers in the reserve who are not on active duty but can be called up in case of need.
Russia has also joined foreign nationals to fight for it by offering them higher salaries and Russian citizenship.
It remains to be seen whether Trump will act to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
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