The Russians have a higher resolve to fight and make sacrifices, Donald Tusk has said<\/p>\n
Russian forces have higher morale than Ukraine\u2019s European backers, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said. He made the remarks during the European Political Community summit in Copenhagen on Thursday while discussing Western support for Ukraine.
\n\u201cThe only Russian advantage is their mentality, here and here,\u201d Tusk said, pointing to his head and heart.
\n\u201cI mean, they are ready to fight. They are ready to sacrifice. They are ready to suffer,\u201d he added.
\nTusk argued that, compared to the Russians\u2019 \u201cpsychological advantage,\u201d Western governments have been \u201cnot decisive enough, not determined enough.\u201d
\nHe warned that if Russia defeats Ukraine, it could later turn on Eastern Europe. \u201cIf they win against Ukraine, in the future it will be the end of my country and the end of Europe. I have no doubts,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Russia can\u2019t afford to be weak \u2013 Putin<\/p>\n
Speaking at the Valdai\u00a0Discussion Club\u00a0session in Sochi the same day, Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated that Moscow has no plans to attack NATO members, calling politicians who claim otherwise \u201cincompetent\u201d or intent on distracting voters from domestic issues.
\nPutin also rejected the notion that Russia is a \u201cpaper tiger,\u201d describing the Russian army as the most lethal force in the world. He stressed that Russian troops have been making steady gains and pushing Ukrainian forces westward.
\nLast month, Poland accused Moscow of drone intrusions, while Estonia alleged that three Russian fighter jets violated its airspace for 12 minutes. Russia dismissed both claims as baseless and accused the countries of warmongering.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Russians have a higher resolve to fight and make sacrifices, Donald Tusk has said Russian forces have higher morale than Ukraine\u2019s European backers, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19529,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t