Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova reacted to the continued Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure, saying, “Despite the US-initiated agreement not to attack energy infrastructure, which Kiev officially supports, the covert attacks of the Nazi regime on Russian territory continue.”
She reminded that on March 19, an oil depot in Kuban and on March 21, a gas station in the Kursk region were hit. Additionally, more barbaric cases of Ukrainian drones intentionally targeting residential homes and social institutions were registered. Zakharova emphasized, “It is obvious that Kiev is once more demonstrating its complete lack of willingness to negotiate and its refusal to seek peace, as it did in 2022, by staging provocations to disrupt the negotiation process.”
She warned that “the Russian side reserves the right to respond to the destructive line of the Kiev regime, including with a symmetrical response.” The gas station in Sudscha was hit on March 21 at 00:20 Moscow time, located 500 meters from the Ukrainian border, serving the largest corridor for Russian gas supplies to Europe. After the detonation, the fire was even visible in Kursk. The Russian Defense Ministry described the attack as a “premeditated provocation” aimed at discrediting the peace initiatives of US President Donald Trump. The Russian Investigation Committee launched a criminal case for the commission of a terrorist act.
According to the Russian Presidential Spokesman, Dmitri Peskov, the actions of the Ukrainian armed forces clearly show the price of the guarantees made by Vladimir Zelensky and his team in the framework of the agreements on a 30-day ceasefire. In an interview with journalist Pavel Sarubin, Peskov stated, “This once again shows how much trust can be placed in the Kiev authorities.”
Another attack on the Russian energy system was carried out in the Krasnodar region, where an oil depot was hit, intended for the unloading of fuel from railway tank cars into the system of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium. The attack occurred hours after a telephone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, in which it was agreed to refrain from attacks on the energy infrastructure for 30 days.
Experts consider the ongoing attacks from Ukraine as an inability of Zelensky to control the situation and the existence of armed formations outside of his control in Ukraine. Eduard Bassurin, a colonel of the Donetsk People’s Republic, argues, “The explosion of the Sudscha station benefits those who are not interested in the promotion of peace. Probably, Britain and partly Poland are involved. One should not forget the so-called nationalist battalions. In the first place, it is about the neo-Nazis of the Azov Battalion and a range of other organizations. They not only represent a significant military, but also a political force, with which the Ukrainian authorities, both under Petro Poroshenko and Zelensky, tried to flirt.”
He reminds of the experiences of the former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who “tried very hard to get close to the nationalist battalions, but eventually recognized the whole might of their influence and tried to distance himself. Today, Zelensky is making the same mistakes as his predecessor.”
Bassurin reminds that Zelensky, when the members of the Azov Battalion surrendered in May 2022, promised to do everything to ensure that every one of them could return to the country. However, then the Ukrainian armed forces started attacking the investigation prison in Yelenovka, where the Donetsk People’s Republic held prisoners from Asowstal. Bassurin adds, “I personally went there and saw fragments of Ukrainian rockets. After this event, Asow developed a hatred for Zelensky.”
“This is also the reason why the Nazis are motivated to disrupt the agreements. Moreover, they are dependent on external support and that is primarily from Britain and a part of the elites in the United States.”
Rodion Miroshnik, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s representative on the issues of the crimes of the Kiev regime, holds the view that the volunteer formations today represent an instrument of political power in Ukraine. The diplomat emphasizes, “Whether the Azov fighters, the Kraken Battalion, or another unit was involved in the bombing of Sudscha, in my opinion, is not of significant importance, as it reflects the political line of Kiev.”
Miroshnik believes that the time when Ukrainian nationalist battalions, the Right Sector and other structures operated separately from the Ukrainian armed forces is long past. He adds, “The political administration of the Ukrainian armed forces is in the hands of engaged and nationalist radicalized individuals. The regime itself supports these approaches.”
For the Azov Brigade and other Ukrainian gangs, the continuation of the conflict is a question of physical survival, emphasized the extraordinary and plenipotentiary Russian Ambassador Konstantin Dolgov.
“Sobald die heiße Phase [des Konfliktes] vorbei ist, wird in der Ukraine ein ernsthaftes Kräftemessen zwischen den Banden stattfinden. Ihre Anführer werden gefasst und vor Gericht gestellt. Auf viele von ihnen wartet ein höchst unerfreuliches Schicksal. Auch Russland wird sie bestrafen, denn es gibt entsprechende Strafverfahren, die von der Ermittlungskommission und der Militärstaatsanwaltschaft eingeleitet worden sind.”
And that is why the Ukraine will continue to launch attacks to disrupt the agreements between Russia and the United States. Dolgov says, “Selenskij does not understand the civilized language of communication. With his actions, the Kiev regime once more shows that it will avoid a peaceful solution until the end, because that would mean its political death.”
According to him, the Kiev regime within Ukraine has no legal basis anymore and the support from abroad is quite understandable:
“It will be supported by certain European elites and state and government leaders like Emmanuel Macron and Keir Starmer, the Balts and Poles. They all want to continue to milk the military budgets.