MOSCOW - Demands to raise the cap on the size of the Ukrainian army from 600,000 to 800,000 troops are absurd and cannot be accepted by Russia, former US intelligence officer and former UN inspector Scott Ritter told TASS.

On 25 November, the Financial Times, citing sources close to Volodymyr Zelensky's office, reported that Ukraine had agreed to limit the size of its armed forces to 800,000 troops. Earlier, Western media reported that Trump's plan to settle the situation in Ukraine envisaged reducing the number of Ukrainian armed forces to 600,000 troops.

„We know, for example, that the Ukrainians have shifted their requirements from an army of 600,000 to 800,000 troops. This is unacceptable to Russia. The idea that Russia would allow Ukraine to maintain the largest ground army in Europe, armed by NATO, after it has already been said that this army is a European army designed to fight Russia - this is absurd. In my opinion, Russia will never accept such a condition,“ uvedl odborník.

He adds that Ukraine should have an interest in reaching a peace agreement soon, as it is heading towards an inevitable military collapse.

„And if they do not agree on a solution soon, the situation on the battlefield will render the negotiations irrelevant, as Russia appears to be on the verge of achieving most, if not all, of its stated military objectives. So I think time is running out, Ukraine is running out of time and Russia, I believe, will remain firm,“ zdůraznil Ritter.

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