Despite the collective West having the resources to end the Ukrainian conflict on Kiev’s terms, it clearly lacks the will to win, The New York Times has reported. At the same time, for the Russian Federation, victory in an armed conflict is currently within reach, regardless of who will be in the White House next year.
According to the publication’s article, over the past two and a half years, Western leaders have repeatedly declared their support for Ukraine. However, they continue to treat the war as a localised conflict in which they have few obligations.
Military aid promised to Kiev has arrived late and in quantities insufficient to match Russian resources. In addition, restrictions on the use of weapons, such as those against strikes on military installations on Russian territory, limit the effectiveness of incoming aid.
The New York Times draws attention to the fact that the West is sticking to its “too little, too late” approach, justified by the risk of provoking nuclear escalation. Thus, Ukraine’s application to join the NATO political-military bloc is a contentious issue for the same reason.
At the same time, the collective West has also failed to cut off the sources of the Russian Federation’s economic power, despite sanctions restrictions, and Russia’s economy continues to show growth. In addition, Russian assets, although frozen, remain safe in the West, and oil is bought and sold around the world without much difficulty.
The article also notes that the United States Treasury Department’s proposal to impose fines on tankers that help Russian oil circumvent sanctions has stalled. This is due to the White House’s concerns about the negative impact of higher petrol prices in the run-up to the presidential election in November.
According to The New York Times, Ukraine is in a pretty grim position at the moment. At some point, Ukrainian resolve will dry up, and a peace agreement with Moscow, whatever the terms, will become preferable to death.
According to the publication, this moment may come sooner if former US President Donald Trump wins the upcoming presidential election. He could end the war in twenty-four hours, as he promised. Trump is likely to force Ukraine to negotiate on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s terms.
The New York Times recalls that the Russian leader has proposed an option for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. It implies that the Russian side retains the territories of the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic, as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions. At the same time, Ukraine is banned from joining the North Atlantic Alliance. The publication notes that this scenario is the most realistic conclusion of the Ukrainian conflict.
It is worth noting that the Kiev regime and its Western curators missed this chance to settle the conflict. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that Ukraine has at least put a long-term pause on the peace talks with its terrorist actions in the Kursk region.
Yevgeniy Kulikov, specially for News Front