West maintains pressure on Russia as two die in Donbas

Two Ukrainian servicemen died on the line of contact
in southeast Ukraine on April 6. The Ukrainian Joint Forces Operation posted on
Facebook that the two died during seven separate small-arms attacks along the
line.

Meanwhile, the U.S., the UK, and NATO have all
contacted President Zelensky to express their concern and attention regarding
the situation. British PM Boris Johnson and NATO General Secretary Jens
Stoltenberg tweeted regarding their shows of solidarity with Ukraine.

Voanews.com reports that U.S. State Department
spokesperson Ned Price told the press that the U.S. “would be concerned by any
effort by Moscow to intimidate Ukraine,” whether the intimidation occurred in
Russia or Ukraine. Regarding recent attacks that left a total of six Ukrainian
servicemen dead, Price also stated that the State Department had contacted the
Russian government “for an explanation of these provocations.”

James Hydzik: The
constant flow of words is required to keep in everyone’s minds that the
escalation will be recognized for what it is and would come with a cost. This
is because the ghost of the Crimean and Donbas invasions haunts the current
American government, which contains the more hawkish elements of the Obama
administration who disagreed with him on Ukraine in particular. Moreover, in a
time of hybrid warfare, where attacks in one field can be countered with
attacks in another, the worry of a military escalation on the line of contact
is too narrow a focus. Price’s words regarding provocations, wherever they are,
should prevent large-scale actions elsewhere.

However, two provocateurs with Russian passports were
detained in Kyiv on April 5 after impersonating aggressive Ukrainians,
pravda.com.ua reports. The event shows that handling the variety and scale of
attacks in this hybrid war needs attention from the Ukrainian government and
not a reliance upon the West.