New fronts in the Russia-Ukraine war could be opening soon due to Russia's alliance with the so-called "Axis of Evil," according to a Ukrainian military commander.
Lieutenant General Serhii Nayev, commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said during a recent interview with ABC News that Russia's alliance with countries like Iran and North Korea was bolstering its arsenal and threatening to expand the war, which is now in its 22nd month. Both nations have supplied Russia with weapons and military equipment to aid in the continuing assault on Ukraine.
Nayev, responsible for the Ukrainian military's northern border defenses, said that Kyiv was "getting ready for" the war with Russia to expand beyond the eastern and southern fronts due to Russian President Vladimir Putin's forces gaining ground in the "resource war" with aid from allies. He said that Ukraine was preparing by "building defenses, putting mines, and training our forces."
"We understand that there is currently a resource war going on," Nayev said. "The Russian Federation gets its resources with the help of the Axis of Evil -- it is North Korea, it is Iran. And we, with the help of our partners, receiving air defense equipment from them, are opposing the Russian Federation with their resources."
Nayev stressed that Ukraine receiving military aid from Western allies was "very, very important to us." He lamented that a recent "reduction of aid will really hit our defense capabilities," before adding "we will fight with what we have."
Newsweek reached out for comment to the Russian Ministry of Defense via email on Monday.
Russia reportedly launched a "record" number of Iranian "Shahed" kamikaze drones in an aerial attack on Ukraine over the weekend. While Tehran-supplied versions of the drones have been frequently used by Russia during the war, the unmanned aerial vehicles are now also being made domestically, sometimes using Iranian parts.
Ukraine claims that Russia has suffered major losses in artillery battles, despite entering the war with superior firepower. However, supplies from Iran and North Korea are helping keep Moscow in the fight.
Ivan Stupak—former officer in the Security Service of Ukraine and current adviser to the Ukrainian parliament's national security, defense and intelligence committee—told Newsweek last week that Russia had received "a million shells" from its allies.
Regardless of aid from the "Axis of Evil" and some success against this year's Ukrainian counteroffensive, a number of Russian military officers have openly expressed pessimism about Moscow's long-term prospects in Ukraine.
In an interview with Russian media outlet RTVI last week, Russian officer Alexey Zhivov called out Moscow's top military leadership, criticizing special forces commander Apti Alaudinov for predicting that Russia will achieve "very serious results" in Ukraine by spring.
"We have not even formulated any medium-term [war] goals," Zhivov said. "Based on the fact that we do not understand what plans our military command has, we cannot say where we will break through in the spring."
A poll released earlier this month found that 48 percent of Russians want their country to negotiate peace with Ukraine, with only 39 percent in favor of Moscow continuing the conflict.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Aila Slisco is a Newsweek night reporter based in New York. Her focus is on reporting national politics, where she ... Read more
