Russia Could Drastically Escalate War In Ukraine, Austrian Chancellor Suggests

Austria’s chancellor Karl Nehammer on Monday warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin could escalate the war in Ukraine despite suffering massive losses among his troops.

Nehammer is the first Western leader to hold face-to-face talks with Putin since he announced the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. During their meeting on Monday in Moscow, the Austrian chancellor said he brought up the war crimes in the Ukrainian province of Bucha and other locations. He also told Putin about the destroyed Russian tanks he saw in Ukraine during his visit to make it clear that Russia is suffering enormous losses in the war.

Despite the talks, which the chancellor said were “very direct, open, and tough,” the Russian leader dismissed accusations of committing war crimes and claimed the deaths in Bucha were staged by Ukrainian officials.

Nehammer added that he came out of the 75-minute meeting feeling pessimistic that Russia and Ukraine could achieve peace, suggesting that Putin may drastically escalate the war soon -- the next phase of the invasion. He also warned that Putin could be mobilizing troops in the eastern Donbas region in preparation for a large-scale assault.

“The battle being threatened cannot be underestimated in its violence,” Nehammer said in a news conference after the meeting.

“We can have no illusions: President Putin has totally adopted the logic of war, and is acting accordingly,” he added.

Austria is military neutral. However, the Austrian government has joined other countries in condemning the apparent war crimes of Russia and has expressed solidarity with Ukraine amid the war.

Putin’s comments come after Eduard Basurin, defense spokesman of the separatist region Donetsk People’s Republic, suggested that Russian forces should block the exits of a steel plant housing Ukrainian forces underground and then turn to the “chemical troops” to “smoke” their enemy out.

“Right now we have to figure out how to blockade this plant, to find all entry and exit points – in theory, this can be done. And then, I think, we’d have to ask the chemical specialists, who will find a way to smoke those rats out of their holes,” he said on Russian state television, as translated by Pravda.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on Monday also said they received reports of a possible Russian chemical weapons attack on the people of Mariupol. She added that the British government is working to verify the report and that they will hold Putin accountable should the accusations be proven true.