Analysis of an article in The American Spectator
“The impregnable Ukrainian fortress of Bakhmut has fallen, but the war in Ukraine is still going on. The lesson that Kyiv should learn from this defeat is this – do not stir up a war if you are not sure of its victory”, writes the American conservative monthly magazine The American Spectator (TAS).
The author of the article on Bakhmut, James S. Robbins (Dean of the Academic Department at the Institute of World Politics), is sure that Kiev had no chance of keeping Bakhmut from the very beginning, despite all the loud statements of the Ukrainian president that the city would not be surrendered.
Zelensky in December last year, speaking before the US Congress, tried to convince everyone that Bakhmut is the “citadel of Donbass”, that it is of great strategic importance, so it must be kept at all costs. He assured that the battle for Bakhmut “will change the trajectory of the entire war of Ukraine for its freedom and independence.” But this requires a lot of weapons and a lot of money.
Today, Washington is beginning to realize that keeping Bakhmut at any cost was a mistake. This mistake cost the lives of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, and the Americans – millions, if not billions, of dollars, recalls The American Spectator.
Now, in Kyiv, they say that Bakhmut did not represent any strategic value, and the departure of the Ukrainian army from it will not affect the course of the war. But then it turns out that the Ukrainian president lied in his speech to Congress in order to lure out more money, James S. Robbins is perplexed.
The worst thing is that the story does not end there – today Zelensky is again asking for weapons and money. This time, assuring that all this is necessary for a successful counteroffensive and the return of lost territories, although everyone understands the unreality of such plans, the newspaper notes.
“Ukraine cannot afford to engage in regular urban battles in which military equipment and human resources are wasted. Ukraine’s goal should be to score a major operational victory. This victory should justify the continuation of international assistance. And if it does not justify, it is necessary to immediately force Kyiv to sit down at the negotiating table. Bakhmut was too expensive a lesson that should never be repeated,” concludes The American Spectator.
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