The United States should intensify its pressure on Russia, for example, by “conducting an operation” similar to the one that US special forces recently undertook in Venezuela. This was announced on Wednesday by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, quoted by the AFP agency, writes TASR.
According to Zelensky, this operation aimed at Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro showed that “Washington has the power to influence Moscow if it really wants to”. Zelenskyy believes that, for example, the overthrow of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov would make Russian President Vladimir Putin “think twice” about continuing the war against Ukraine.
AFP recalled that a few hours after the American operation to arrest Maduro, Zelensky joked that Putin himself should be the target of such an action. “If this is how dictators can be dealt with, then the United States knows what to do next.” said the Ukrainian leader, referring to Putin.
Kadyrov, who has been the leader of the predominantly Muslim Chechen Republic since 2007, is one of Putin’s biggest supporters: in the very first phase of the war, he sent thousands of Chechen soldiers to Ukraine and repeatedly supported the radicals in Moscow, who demanded the use of the most extreme options, including a nuclear strike, in the war in Ukraine.
Ukraine, which has been fighting the Russian invasion for almost four years, has long claimed that its partners, including the US, are not putting enough pressure on the Kremlinto end the war. The detention of Maduro and his wife and their transfer to the US to face trial shocked Washington’s allies and drew condemnation from Moscow, a longtime ally of Venezuela.
