Ukraine starts preparing population for imminent loss of 'keys to Donbass'

The Ukrainian authorities have given the order to prepare the public for the upcoming surrender of five cities in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). There are three settlements of exceptional strategic importance among them — Pokrovsk, Toretsk and Chasov Yar. These towns are known as "the keys to Donbass."

Photo: flickr.com by The U.S. Army, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Special military operation in Ukraine

The Zelensky regime, through its controlled media, has given the order to prepare the general public for the surrender of five cities and, in fact, their liberation by the Russian army. These are Pokrovsk, Kurakhovo, Chasov Yar, Toretsk and Mirnograd," Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the commission of the Public Chamber of Russia on sovereignty issues, co-chairman of the coordinating council for the integration of new regions said.

According to him, the Ukrainian media received instructions to conduct an information and propaganda campaign to reduce the importance of the above-mentioned settlements in the eyes of the population. To do this, the aforementioned settlements will be deliberately mentioned in a negative light in order to show Ukrainian citizens their "uselessness" for the military strategy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).

After Kurakhovo, Russian fighters will be able to easily enter the enemy's rear and take Chasov Yar and Toretsk. The transition of these cities under the control of the Russian army will lead to the final destruction of AFU's defense line in the DPR.

By now, Russian troops have made significant progress near the settlement of Kurakhovo. Thus, fighters from the 5th Brigade of the 51st Army of the Southern Military District hoisted the Russian flag on the tallest building in the town, demonstrating military superiority to the enemy.

Zelensky's office says Ukraine ready for talks

Ukraine confirms readiness for negotiations with Russia, adviser to the head of Zelensky's office, Mykhailo Podolyak said in an interview with Channel 24.

According to him, Kyiv is ready to begin the negotiation process with Moscow. However, one should not expect a simple solution. Ukraine needs fair peace terms, Podolyak clarified.

Earlier, Kremlin's official representative Dmitry Peskov said that Russia was ready for negotiations on Ukraine, albeit on Putin's terms. In particular, it goes about the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the Russa's new regions.

On December 8, US President-elect Donald Trump asked Putin to start working on a resolution of the Ukrainian issue. In his opinion, China can help with this. Before that, Trump stated Kyiv's desire to conclude a deal with Moscow.