It has been many days since the explosion and sinking of the Russian Black Sea capital ship "Moscow", and a legendary warship that has experienced more than 40 years of ups and downs has thus ended its mission.
As for the cause of the accident, the Russian and Ukrainian sides have different opinions, the Russian side said that it was because the fire detonated the ammunition on the ship and caused the disaster, while the Ukrainian officials insisted that the ship was hit by ukrainian naval missiles off the coast of Odessa.
Regardless of the truth of the matter, the loss of the ship was a major setback for Russia, and if it was indeed Ukraine's doing, then Russia would have to retaliate, and this day seems to come sooner than we think.
According to the Global Times reported on April 17, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Konashenkov claimed on the 16th that the Russian army shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane near Odessa on the same day, which carried a large number of weapons supplied by Western countries to Ukraine.
The location where the Ukrainian military plane was shot down by the Russians was also in Odessa, and the time was exactly 2 days after the Russian warship sank, this operation can certainly be understood as Moscow's counterattack against Kiev. Some Western media described the sinking of the Russian warship as a "huge tactical victory for Ukraine", saying that if the Ukrainian army's attack is confirmed, it will prove that the Ukrainian anti-ship missile stock can penetrate the heavy air defense system.
However, the Russian army shot down the Ukrainian military plane this time to show the outside world that the martyrdom of the "Moscow" may have some impact on the morale of the Russian army, but Russia's military operations in Ukraine will continue to advance without any interference.
In fact, Russia's shooting down of the Ukrainian military plane is not a temporary intention, as early as a few days ago Russia has issued a warning to Ukraine and the West, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov said that Russia will be a tough way to curb the United States and its allies trying to slow down Russia's special military operations in Ukraine, and those Us and NATO vehicles transporting weapons on Ukrainian territory will be regarded by Russia as legitimate military targets.
After Russia's warning, the West has not relented in the slightest, and the US president's national security adviser Sullivan also said that the United States is "working around the clock" to send weapons to Kiev.
Since the West insists on offending, then Russia can only respond decisively, this time the Russian army shot down the Ukrainian transport plane carrying Western aid weapons, but also killing chickens and monkeys, if the United States and NATO continue to press, then the next to be shot down will be these foreign vehicles.
After Russia showed its iron fist, a dramatic scene appeared again, and Ukrainian President Zelenskiy changed his previous attitude in an interview with the media on the 17th, saying that Ukraine was ready to negotiate with Russia on Ukraine's refusal to join NATO and Crimea.
Zelenskiy's change of attitude means that the Russian army's counterattack has played a certain effect, but considering Ukraine's consistent counter-offensive approach, zelenskiy's statement has some credibility, which is indeed a big question mark. Considering that the russian defense ministry had just announced the day before that the Russian army had completely eliminated the Azov battalion, foreign mercenaries and Ukrainian troops in the city of Mariupol, it is not surprising that Zelenskiy made this statement.
Mariupol can be said to be the "old nest" of the Azov battalion, if the Russian war report is true, it means that the most difficult bone has been gnawed, and the first phase of the Russian army's task - to "de-Nazify" Ukraine has been basically completed.
Realizing its disadvantageous situation, Ukraine immediately reversed its direction and once again expressed its willingness to return to the negotiating table, but it is worth noting that just a few days ago Zelenskiy also shouted that if Russia eliminated the Mariupol defenders, the Russian-Ukrainian peace negotiations would end and Ukraine would not trade territory and people.
The inconsistency once again reveals Ukraine's dilemma – both wanting to bargain with Russia and lacking the capital to ask for a price, so it always gives people a sense of backlash. Up to now, Russia and Ukraine have experienced five rounds of negotiations, but have not made any substantive progress, and since the negotiation table is not close, then the only way to continue to speak with fists is to continue to speak, because the chips on the negotiating table originally come from the results on the battlefield.
As far as Russia and Ukraine are concerned, they both believe that they have reached a situation where there is no way to retreat, and a "duel" is inevitable.
The US media recently speculated that Ukraine and Russia are pouring large-scale reinforcements into the Donbass region, and the region will erupt in "the biggest battle to date". Russia is ready to give it a go, but Ukraine is still jumping back and forth, but whether it is a "one-time victory or defeat" or a protracted war, it will cause huge attrition for both Russia and Ukraine, and the beneficiaries behind it will only be those war dealers who set fires behind the scenes. For our part, we still hope that the conflict will end as soon as possible and that peace can be restored as soon as possible.