ArmInfo.Russia is staking its all in Ukraine. In any case, all of Moscow's recent steps are evidence thereof, Stepan Grigoryan, Head of the Analytical Center on Globalization and Regional Cooperation, said in an interview with ArmInfo.
"The very fact of Russian invasion of Ukraine, beyond the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, is evidence thereof. Before February 24, few people could think Moscow was capable of that. And now the Russian leaders are staking their all only to win an outright victory in the war. And this is the reason why the theater of war is being consistently expanded, with more and more Ukrainian towns and villages becoming the targets," Mr Grigoryan said. In this context he points out the warnings issued by U.S. President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that Russia could use chemical weapons. Mr Grigoryan said again that few people believed Russia would launch an invasion of Ukraine despite numerous warnings by Washington and Brussels.
Therefore, chemical weapons could be used as well, especially in the context of the Russian representatives' statements at the U.N. that Russia could, if necessary, use even nuclear weapons. Mr Grigoryan hopes that Moscow's statements are merely a means of exerting pressure on its opponents, and it is Moscow's threatening tone that prevents NATO from closing the sky over Ukraine.
"It is clear that using nuclear weapons will prove fatal for Russia itself. So I consider such a scenario unlikely in contrast to possible use of chemical weapons. As to the people who consider it unlikely, I would advise them to think back to the period before February 24 and on the U.S. warnings of the planned attack," he said.
As regards the impact the situation in Ukraine could have on Armenia and Artsakh, Mr Grigoryan thinks such an impact could be significant. In this context, he points out a need for considering all the possible scenarios that could unfold in Armenia as a result of the situation in and round Ukraine.
"Given the Aliyev regime's recent provocations in Artsakh, we can see the situation in Ukraine affects Artsakh in some ways or others. And Armenia's relevant agencies should know the ways of opposing it," Mr Grigoryan said.