Scope of the Russian Operation in Ukraine Has Changed: Lavrov

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the "geographical objectives" of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine have changed as the West is providing Ukraine with more long-range weapons.

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Beyond the Lugansk and Donetsk republics, the Russian operation will be expanded to the Kherson region, the Zaporizhzhia region and other territories to push the contact line further away, Lavrov told RT broadcaster and RIA Novosti news agency.

Lavrov said his country cannot accept Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky "or whoever replaces him" placing weapons in areas that could pose a direct threat to the territories of Russia, Lugansk, and Donetsk.

“If Western countries supply long-range weapons to Ukraine, these goals will move even further,” the Russian Minister warned.

Regarding these statements, the Moscow Times recalled that Washington has sent HIMARS medium-range rocket systems to Zelensky over the last month, which "has allowed Ukraine to attack Russian positions beyond the front lines more frequently and with greater accuracy."

During an interview with FOX, former U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency officer Rebecca Koffler acknowledged that "there is no such amount of money or weapons that would be enough for Ukraine to win… because the Russian army is incommensurably more powerful than the Ukrainian one."

Meanwhile, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu inspected the Western group of troops involved in the special military operation. He ordered the military to increase the capability of destroying Ukrainian drones and preventing the Ukrainian forces from shelling liberated areas. He had previously inspected the Southern, Central and Eastern groups of troops.