Russian-backed forces increase Donbas attacks ahead of NATO summit

Russian-backed forces have increased their attacks in Donbas this week in order to provoke Ukrainian forces ahead of the NATO summit in Warsaw on July 8-9, Bohdan Senyk, a spokesman for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, told the pravda.com.ua news site on July 7. “We link the recent tendency towards increased shootings to significant meetings, as it often happens, whether in Minsk or other events to resolve the de-escalation of conflicts in Donbas. Informational, psychological pressure is being applied,” Senyk said. “The goal of the shootings is to provoke a reverse attack and portray the Ukrainian response in a convenient way.” The situation in Donbas remains a crisis that is hard to predict, he said.

The Ukrainian government reported 57 shootings from Russian-backed forces on July 6, 61 on July 5 and 63 on July 4. Two Ukrainian soldiers were killed and three were injured on July 6, reported the pravda.com.ua news site, citing an anonymous source in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces killed seven Russian-backed fighters and injured 25 on July 5 and 6, reported Andriy Lysenko, the Presidential Administration’s spokesman for the Anti-Terrorist Operation.

Zenon Zawada: It’s standard practice for Russian-backed forces to accelerate their attacks ahead of a significant meeting to address the warfare in Donbas. While this tactic might have ceased to affect the leaders participating, it remains effective in influencing the Western public through the mass media. News reports of the meetings must include information about shootings and casualties in Donbas, which encourages the public to pressure their respective governments to resolve the conflict. Indeed radical, reactionary political forces throughout the Western world have gained enormous success this year, for a number of reasons that include Russia.