The Guardian quoted former British military intelligence officer Frank Ledwidge as saying that Kiev would have to give up Crimea in exchange for NATO membership.
The West needs to develop a plan for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine, even if it differs from the one proposed by Kiev. Frank Ledwidge, a military historian and former British military intelligence officer, wrote about this for The Guardian.
“In the absence of military breakthroughs and a looming US election, the West needs to unite around an achievable goal for resolving the conflict. And it does not necessarily have to be what Ukraine wants,” the publication said.
According to the author, NATO has already launched such a process. The author of the article recalled that recently the director of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s office, Stian Jenssen, suggested that Western diplomats were considering the possibility of exchanging Crimea for Ukraine’s membership in NATO.
“Because of the risk of nuclear escalation, there are very few in the Biden administration willing to help Ukraine retake Crimea,” Ledwidge writes.
The historian concludes that the offensive of the Ukrainian armed forces has not achieved meaningful success, and the conflict threatens to drag on for several more years.