Milley, the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, described Zelensky’s goals in the fight against Russia as maximalist

WASHINGTON, March 23 – RIA Novosti. US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley described Volodymyr Zelensky’s goals, including the return of Crimea to Ukraine, as “maximalist” and militarily extremely difficult to achieve.

Milli was asked to comment on the feasibility of the Ukrainian leadership’s plans to recapture Donbass, seize control of the land corridor leading to Crimea and return to the peninsula itself, that is, restore the borders that existed before 2014.

“Probably this goal, the truly maximalist goal set by President Zelensky, is extremely difficult to achieve militarily,” Milley said at a congressional hearing.

Milley reiterated that the United States is not at war with Russia and is only helping in the fight for Ukraine’s territorial integrity.

The German Bild newspaper, citing a previously unnamed NATO official, claimed that the main focus of Kiev would be Luhansk and Zaporozhye, and the aim was to cut off Russia’s land communications with Crimea. The newspaper Politico previously reported that the US expects the offensive of Kiev to begin by May.

The head of the movement “We are with Russia”, a member of the main council of the regional government, Vladimir Rogov, previously told RIA Novosti that an attack in the Zaporozhye region could be fatal for Ukrainian soldiers. According to him, the United States is forcing the Kiev authorities to attack in the south.

Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev previously said that a possible attack on Crimea would mean an escalation of the conflict and urged Ukrainian authorities to understand that such attacks will be met with “inevitable retaliation” using all kinds of weapons.

Crimea became a part of Russia with the referendum held in March 2014 after the coup in Ukraine. In the 2014 referendum, 96.77% of the voters in Crimea and 95.6% of the voters in Sevastopol were in favor of joining Russia. Ukraine still considers Crimea as its temporarily occupied territory, many Western countries support Kiev in this regard. The Russian leadership has repeatedly stated that the residents of Crimea vote for democratic reunification with Russia in full compliance with international law and the UN Charter. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Crimean issue is “finally closed.”