Biggest mistake he’s made so far Vladimir Putin V Ukraine is to give the West the impression that Russia he may lose the war. The hasty attack on Kyiv did not achieve its goal. The Russian hippo no longer looks as formidable as it was portrayed. The war turned into a showdown between disillusioned Russians and enthusiastic Ukrainians.

Such expectations naturally increased Ukraine’s military goals.

OUR President Zelenskywho advocated a peace deal in Ukraine almost a year ago, is now calling for total victory: the return of every inch of Russian-occupied territory, including Crimea.

Polls show that Ukrainians will not agree to anything less. Ukrainian leaders and some of their Western patrons are already dreaming of the Nuremberg trials of Putin and his inner circle in Moscow.

The problem is that Ukraine has only one sure way to accomplish this feat in the near future: NATO’s direct involvement in the war. Only the full deployment of NATO and US troops and weapons could lead to a complete victory for Ukraine in a short period of time.

Without the participation of NATO, the Ukrainian army can hold the line of defense and return the territory, as it was in Kharkiv and Kherson, but a complete victory is almost impossible. If Russia can barely advance down Bakhmut a few hundred meters a day at the cost of 50 to 70 men—given that the Ukrainians are so well fortified—how can Ukrainians better counter the Russians who are entrenched in, say, Crimea?

USA doesn’t want it

The problem for Kyiv, however, is that Washington is not interested in immediately entering the war. General Mark Miley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has already expressed the view that a complete victory for neither Russia nor Ukraine is achievable in the short term.

President Biden and his national security adviser Jake Sullivan were adamant that the US should not get involved in the conflict. The American public also showed no interest in participating directly.

The US may even be interested in continuing the fighting, as the war reduces Russia’s ability to operate in other parts of the world and increases the cost of US energy resources.

financially stable

As it stands, Ukraine’s economic future looks viable even without the territories that currently belong to Russia. Ukraine has not become a landlocked country and still controls seven of the eight regions with the highest GDP per capita. Ukraine risks compromising this position with a counterattack.

Only Washington ultimately has the right to decide which part of Ukraine it wants to take under its protection.

Officials’ real reluctance to include Ukraine in NATO has never been more evident, and Kyiv’s public embrace has never been more fervent. Meanwhile, European leaders may soon find themselves in the uncomfortable position of convincing Ukrainians that access to the single market and the European Marshall Fund is a worthy substitute for “total victory.”