Washington
PUBLIC OPINION: Should the West Supply Ukraine With More Weapons to End the War Amid Stalemate Talks?
Ukraine's head of the armed forces has voiced concerns that Ukraine is heading for a stalemate in the war with Russia and that the only way out of it is via a technological breakthrough.
In October Kazakhstan offered 117 old Soviet-era combat aircraft for sale by auction and it has now been reported that the US has bought 81 of them through offshore intermediaries.
Apr. 28, 09:59
Comments (7)
Of course the West should supply the weapons Ukraine needs to end the war but will they? Had NATO and the US in particular acted at the beginning of the Russian invasion the war would probably be over by now or at least Ukraine's territorial loss would have been substantially less. Putin knew the West was week and gambled successfully on that knowledge.
Stalemate? Really. In NFL football, like focusing on the front line only. Ukrainians are kicking butt with their wide receivers (drones, Ukrainian made Neptune, Sea Baby, artillery, submarine drones). This ain't the Korean War, all about sq. mi. Not foot soldiers, but fought with drones. The Ukrainian "Shark" drone flies a mile high with high resolution cameras, Russkis don't have a chance. 20 years from now it will be A.I. robots. And Ukraine is taking out $25 million Moscovian ships with modified $5300 Australian wax cardboard drones. Ukr designed a tank that floats. Putin knows that he will lose Kherson areas soon, with Crimea next, the Black Sea Fleet gone to Rossiyska port (whatever), where they can't load cruise missiles (as if they work anyway, the Caspian Sea launches are few because assembly line workers stole the parts to sell). With 420,000 Moscovian sorry souls in Ukraine, they still can't make any headway, the Russian troops are in appaulling conditions, low morale, as the non Moscow/St. Pete's amd criminals and untrained troops will parish. Asked to dig without shovels. Winter comes, the Ukrainians have winter coats, the Russians vodka and illicit drugs, not much else. En masse, Russian troops will freeze, like Napoleon's Retreat from Moscow. Putin and company is trying to scare the West to settle now, but Ukraine knows the inevitable will happen to Putin and the ganster and diva land, once again. Moscovia znov rozvalytsia. Ukraiina Peremozhe!!
We must stop this kind of aggression. The urge of Russian regaining it's old power and control over their old empire reminds me of Germany and that quest that cost the lives of millions of people. The form of Russian rule simply does not work, We must help the Ukrainians keep what they feel they have. This problem is far more important to the world than the other problems and strife anywhere else. Russia has had programs against many different societies in the past. Against their Jewish communities, against their German cultures and more.
@Jack,
Yes, The US and Nato should have last year told Putin to "Get the hell out of Ukraine" We find lately that using very valuable rockets to blow up Russian helicopters was so worthwhile! "They were devastating to Ukraine front line troups!" Really? What of "stingers" that made there helicopters use of little value? Oh, was it McArthur that said "that one that could fly over mountains, one could overcome anything man made"? Or would flying 7000 miles round trip to bomb Japan be enough. So if the US were fighting Russia who thinks that an military that has Airborn divisions 82 or 101 and 155mm cannons that were designed and built to be carried by helicopters would be slugging thorough mine fields or in trenches needs to realize from fighters to long range missiles to helicopters that we the west do not have to provide some future exotic weapon, we should have already provided our existing technology and the extreme length of this battle does not favor a good outcome for US of Ukraine. At the beginning of the war we hear our sect of defense say that we would would "degrade" Russia. Anyone heard our President say he wants Ukraine to "WIN" Call your representative and tell them we have made billions of $ of investments in this war to keep one of the the worlds breadbasket and a 40 million population free and want Ukraine to get the already available means necessary to win and we want this over with a Russia expulsion and a win for Ukraine and the US..
Zelenskyy may deny it’s a statement but reality says otherwise. The western nations even if they provided the money do not have the ability to provide more modern tanks. The US quit making main battle tanks in 2006 and is unwilling to provide non export tanks from US stocks. The British, French, and Germans are in the same boat. They believed the age of the tank was over.
But the real issue facing Ukraine is the lack of manpower. The troops at the front the average age is 40 +. This means the younger generation of soldiers is depleted. So even if Ukrainians received tons of equipment who is going to use it? 50 and 60 year olds?
Ukraine cannot materially or humanly compete in a war of attrition with Russia.
Russia has the disposable manpower, Ukraine does not.
The only way out is for Ukraine to get the Arabs to mediate a ceasefire then negotiations. The current suicidal war is netting Ukrainians zero.
Unfortunately, sometimes the bad guys win. Ukraine should be thankful that it survives as a sovereign nation.
@Wayne P, - Bad guys win when capable good guys stand down. The west has vastly more resources than Russia, with the exception of humans that can be forced into the meat grinder. There is no reason to let Russian aggression prevail when we have the means and Ukraine has the will to break Russia’s ability to be the bully in their neighborhood for decades to come. Putin exposed to view the deficiencies in Russia’s “war machine.” The west has the technological capability to render Russia neutered in Ukraine. Even if we must deplete a portion of our frontline stocks while ramping up new production, there will never be a better time to marginalize a destabilizing threat to the comparative peace and prosperity of the last 75+ years. The U.S. has benefitted mightily from the resolute bearing of our forefathers. We shouldn’t dither that investment away now.
Slava Ukraini.
There are two option for the US or Western "allies." One, support the existence of a sovereign nation striving for democratic stability or Two, support the Putin Regime by either not funding or limiting funding enough that would Ukraine would cease to exist and allow an extremist right wing, post-soviet aggressor to defeat a nation tired of post-soviet graft yearning to be free. Do you walk away from a bully and/or stand by and watch the victim be assailed? This would not even be questioned 30-40 years ago in the US. That tells you something about what's presently happening with foreign policy and mass media efforts with political agendas.
Yes get rid of russian aggression