Today, let's talk about the Russia-Ukraine conflict and refocus it.
In my opinion, the war between Russia and Ukraine has been stalemate until now, and Putin has actually thought about how Russia should fight next. And in a few days, within this month, Putin will begin his first foreign trip in office. This news has been confirmed, and the first country that Putin visited was China. When the time comes, Putin will most likely make some strategic disclosures with us.
What does Putin think now? I think the first point is that Putin has lost all hope for the so-called ceasefire negotiations. Two days ago, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs launched a wanted notice against Zelensky. Many people don't care about this matter, believing that Russia's move has no practical meaning at all. Isn't it a big joke that Putin himself is on the wanted list of the Hague Criminal Court, and he wants others?
But in my opinion, Russia's arrest of Zelensky at this juncture actually sends a very clear signal. What signal? Russia no longer intends to negotiate any kind of armistice with Ukraine. What we couldn't talk about before, we can't talk about it again in the future. The wanted Zelensky is Russia's unilateral lock-up, and there is room for direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
This is similar to a "cruel word" that Putin let go before, and the meaning is actually similar. Putin said that all of Russia's strategic goals and tasks will be accomplished on the battlefield. The implication is that Russia no longer counts on political representations and negotiations outside the battlefield, and as long as Russia wants it, it will be realized from the battlefield.
Now Putin has the confidence and self-confidence to do so. After all, Russia's superiority on the battlefield today is visible to the naked eye. Now the Russian army is on the front line of the battlefield, and there are new developments almost every day. Looking at the latest news, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that the Russian army has carried out large-scale strikes on energy facilities in 6 regions of Ukraine.
In terms of attitude, Putin is now very tough, negotiations are impossible to negotiate, and everything will be seen on the battlefield. In terms of operation, the Russian army continues to consume, and the vital forces of the Ukrainian army frequently strike at Ukraine's energy facilities and destroy Ukraine's logistics supplies. However, Putin did not blindly expand the war situation, but began to rectify military discipline and clean up corruption within the army.
It is clear that Putin is preparing for a big war. What a big war, the war in Ukraine 2.0. This concept was also mentioned in previous episodes. The US White House claims that Ukraine will launch a counteroffensive in 2025. The specific form of the counteroffensive has not been said by the United States, but I think it is very likely that the United States will directly intervene in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in the form of a "US military adviser" during the Vietnam War. That is, in person.
Putin should have predicted this, so Putin's current style of play is very clear, advancing steadily, while preserving strength, consuming Ukraine to the greatest extent, and accumulating strength, ready to fight head-on with the US military. And these things, when Putin visits China this time, will definitely give the truth to China.
This is not to say that Putin has to report to China. Rather, Putin wants to ensure China's attitude in the event of a further escalation of the conflict. Moreover, on the basis of today's high degree of strategic mutual trust between China and Russia, it is indeed necessary for Putin to make a general explanation with China, so that China can be prepared to face changes in the situation.