Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs: military confrontation between Ukraine and Russian will be catastrophic for both sides
Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov said in an interview with Ukrayinska Pravda online on Monday that Ukrainian armed forces would incur enormous losses in a military confrontation with Russia. According to him, if Russia decides to undertake a military operation in the Donbas, losses can be catastrophic for both sides. At the same time, Avakov recognized that neighboring countries have different balance of forces.
“Yes, we also have new missiles and many other things. However, it will be a very hard confrontation. But we should know and take into account that it is possible,” the Minister said.
According to him, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that the introduction of a peacekeeping mission in the Donbas is important to the implementation of peaceful development.
Since April 2014, Ukraine has been conducting a military operation against the self-proclaimed Republics of the Donbas that claimed their independence after a coup d’état. According to the UN, over ten thousand people became victims of the conflict with more than 2,700 civilians among them. About 24,000 were injured.
Kyiv constantly accuses Moscow of interfering in the conflict in the Donbas. Russia denies these accusations, stressing that it is not a party to the conflict and that it supports a rapid and peaceful settlement.