Heading towards World War III?

The Hungarian Foreign Ministry has rejected EU calls for Russia to be defeated in Ukraine, saying the bloc needed peace, not a prolonged conflict.

EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson made several statements on the hostilities this week, stressing the bloc’s “determination, resolve and unity to stand by Ukraine as long as it takes.” She also insisted that “to end this crisis, first, Putin must lose.”

Responding on Friday, Tamas Menczer, State Secretary at Hungary’s Foreign Ministry, accused Johansson of making “a very dangerous statement because it links the end of a crisis with a military event, about which we don’t know when will it happen or if it happens at all.”

“This pro-war stance of Brussels extends the conflict and suffering. This is extremely dangerous and unacceptable,” he insisted.

Menczer reiterated the position of the Hungarian government, which is that “we need immediate peace instead of a longer war. Peace requires an immediate ceasefire and dialogue.”

www.rt.com/news/565128-ukraine-eu-hungary-peace

In his exclusive interview with the close ally of Vladimir Putin, NBC News’ Keir Simmons asked President Lukashenko about the war in Ukraine, mass graves, the Russian leader’s state of mind, and the possibility that nuclear weapons could be used.

Ukraine has been intensifying its attacks on the Belgorod Region of Russia. In this Special Report I show you how Ukraine forces shell a Russian Orphan Housing Project, Mall and sports center in the village of Shebekino in the Belgorod region of Russia.

Iranian instructors help the Russians launch Shahed-136 kamikaze drones from the territory of the temporarily occupied Kherson Oblast and annexed Crimea, the Movement of National Resistance of Ukraine reported.

Iranian instructors train the Russians to use kamikaze drones and directly monitor the launch of drones on Ukrainian civilian targets, including strikes on Mykolaiv and Odesa Oblasts.

euromaidanpress.com/2022/10/19/20-iranian-instructors-spotted-in-temporarily-occupied-kherson-oblast

Ukraine has condemned unsubstantiated claims by Russia that Kyiv might use a "dirty bomb" - conventional explosives laced with radioactive material.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said this meant Russia itself could be preparing an attack of this kind.

Ukraine's allies also dismissed the claims, with the US saying it "rejected any pretext for Russian escalation".

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu made the dirty bomb remarks in a call with his UK counterpart Ben Wallace.

He said he was "concerned about possible provocations by Kyiv involving the use of a dirty bomb".

www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63369175

French President Emmanuel Macron called on Sunday for a peace deal in Ukraine, but insisted that Kiev will dictate the terms of such an agreement. The Ukrainian government, however, has repeatedly ruled out any compromise with Moscow.

Speaking at a peace conference organized by a Catholic charity in Rome, Macron said that while “calls for peace might seem…like a betrayal” of Ukraine, the “international community” will one day support a negotiated settlement between Kiev and Moscow, the Associated Press reported.

However, peace cannot be “captured by Russian power,” Macron added. “We want the Ukrainian people to decide at a certain point…the moment and the terms of peace.”

The French president has expressed this same sentiment already, declaring earlier this summer that “Ukraine will decide when the conditions are met to build peace.” The leaders of the US, UK, and NATO have issued similarly-worded statements while continuing to bankroll and arm Ukraine’s military, and France, along with the other members of the G7, has pledged to maintain this support for “as long as it takes.”

Ukraine’s terms, however, will likely preclude any settlement in the near future. President Vladimir Zelensky has pledged not to negotiate with Russia as long as Vladimr Putin remains in power, signing a decree earlier this month forbidding talks with the Russian president.

Zelensky has also promised to seize the regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporozhye, which acceded to membership of the Russian Federation following referendums last month. Additionally, the Ukrainian leader has vowed to capture Crimea, which joined Russia following a referendum in 2014.

Not only would an assault on these territories present a formidable military challenge for Zelensky’s forces, a full-scale attack on Russian land would invite Moscow to retaliate with “all the means available” to it, Putin cautioned in a recent speech. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was more blunt when he warned Kiev in July that an attack on Crimea would trigger “Judgement Day” for Kiev.

www.rt.com/russia/565203-macron-peace-terms-ukraine