On Thursday, March 24, on the 29th day of the war in Ukraine, which the Russian Federation unleashed because of the imperial ambitions of its President Vladimir Putin, foreign media continue to think about how the war can be stopped, what is the role of each of the countries in this conflict, and also analyze why foreign intelligence agencies have so underestimated Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Sky News about Zelensky's disappointment with Brussels talks
The publication emphasizes that the President of Ukraine will be disappointed with today's talks in Brussels, since this summit failed at least one critical level.
It is noted that world leaders have been talking all day about their commitment to Ukraine, “proudly showing off their unity in public”.
– But to tell you the truth, President Zelensky, the man who supported this summit, will be disappointed. This became apparent at the press conference of Boris Johnson, where some of the differences and problems became especially clear, the journalists note.
They recalled that Zelensky refused his request for a no-fly zone and instead asked for more jets and tanks to be sent to Ukraine, but it became clear at a press conference that NATO did not agree.
So, the prime minister UK Secretary Boris Johnson, who has consistently supported Ukraine, said that NATO “thinks what they can do to help”.
– Zelensky really demanded tanks and planes. There is a special reason for this. President Zelensky wants to liberate Mariupol in order to help thousands of Ukrainians in the city… From the point of view of logistics, at the moment it looks very difficult… But we understand very well what he is asking for,” he said.
The publication noted that Boris Johnson “looked devastated at the end of the conference, speaking as a supporter of President Zelensky, and then stumbling across a line that no one could cross, fearing that it might drag the West into some much larger conflict.
CNN on scenarios for ending the war unleashed by Russia in Ukraine
The publication considers several likely scenarios of what will happen next. One is that the war in Ukraine could become a protracted conflict.
However, journalists note that Russia lost a significant number of soldiers, weapons and equipment in this war.
They emphasize that although Moscow has been involved in protracted conflicts in the past, it will not want to end this conflict with a completely destroyed army.
Another option, in their opinion, is another push and surge in RF activity.
“Russia still has capabilities and reserves, and there will be a surge in intensity as it tries to bring in more troops,” Jeffrey Mankoff, a researcher at the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the US National Defense University, was quoted in the publication.
< p>Journalists recall that a recent update from the British Ministry of Defense states that Russia is pulling troops from all over the country, up to the Pacific Fleet, as well as militants from Armenia and private military companies, Syrians and other mercenaries.
The question is how long Russia can continue with high casualties.
– Of course, there will be more troops and other equipment and assistance, but there is a point where it will be difficult to maintain such an operational pace, especially the numbers we've heard from both sides in terms of casualties in terms of men and weapons – this exceeds the possibility of resupply, Mankoff estimated.
Politico: Germany has learned the wrong lesson from its history
The publication notes that for tyrants like Vladimir Putin, restraint is only an invitation to further escalation.
Author material, the German journalist Matthias Depfner, talks about such a phenomenon as a sense of collective shame that appeared among the inhabitants of Germany in connection with the Second World War and largely determines the policy of the country today.
However, he notes that even the story of Adolf Hitler clearly demonstrates that the policy of appeasing the aggressor does not work.
How could anyone even try to negotiate with someone like Hitler? Why did the Allied intervention take so long, and why wasn't it much more violent? Millions of Jewish lives could have been saved. Millions of soldiers may not have been sent to their deaths. And the bombing of Dresden and other cities should not have happened. Here are the lessons I learned from World War II: Racism, never again! Genocide – never again! Intolerance – never again! And peace – never again! – the article says.
It is reported that authoritative experts in the field of constitutional law, such as Otto Luchterhandt or Christian Tomushat, note that what is happening in Mariupol can already be classified as genocide – the destruction of the Ukrainian people on a specific territory.
“The Russians are seeking to exterminate this part of the Ukrainian population as part of their attempt to take over the city, which, if successful, would amount to genocide,” Tomushat is quoted in the article.
It is noted that the reaction to the recent demands of Ukraine and other NATO countries about intervening in the war was “very diverse and very revealing”: calls for the supply of weapons, the mobilization of troops, or perhaps even the creation of a no-fly zone to stop the killings, were welcomed by the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, but not in Germany and Switzerland.
There is total confusion.
– When I wrote in the Bild newspaper that I was proposing NATO members to provide military support to Ukraine, I was accused of “warmongering”. The German journalist Deniz Jusel, who openly advocated closing airspace over Ukraine, was even asked to resign as president of the PEN Association of Free Speech Writers. What is particularly revealing is the clear line that has emerged regarding the use of military pressure to prevent or end a war. There was outrage from countries or environments that live in peace and guaranteed prosperity, who have very little experience with the Russian president, and who for decades have witnessed totalitarian behaviors only on television or in history textbooks, the author noted in the material. .
It is emphasized that those countries where people were forced to fight for their freedom or experienced life under a dictator agreed to close the sky over Ukraine, and ideology or party preferences practically did not play a role”.
“The theory that war can be avoided if we avoid escalation is based on the false assumption that autocratic or dictatorial aggressors will be pleased if they can achieve their goals through the non-intervention of others. But there is little in Putin to indicate that this is the case. It was this naivety that allowed him to annex Crimea in 2014. And what did Putin learn from this? He realized that it made sense to continue the escalation, the article says.
It is noted that if Ukraine falls, the Baltic states or Poland may be the next target. In this case, NATO will either have to intervene or continue the current tactics.
“We are not giving the people who are defending our freedom in Kyiv, Mariupol, and soon Odessa and Lvov what they really need. And we do it using legal arguments. Formally, Ukraine cannot be under the responsibility of NATO. But we act like cops watching people being attacked across the street and don't intervene because the other side of the street is not under their jurisdiction. And so they swear, but they just move on, – the journalist compared.
He calls “heartless the insistence on formalities with which Germany refuses to help”.
The journalist argues that the Germans may be losing the chance given them by history after the era of Nazism.
– Houses are burning in Mariupol, people are starving, men must humiliatingly undress in front of Russian soldiers, deliberately shoot civilians, children are being killed, corpses are lying on the streets. And we Germans do not consider it our duty. Our government can still draw the right conclusions from the history of Germany so that we do not have to be ashamed of being Germans again,” he concluded.
The New York Times about the failed intelligence forecasts about the war in Ukraine
The publication emphasizes that the US intelligence services believed that the Afghan military would hold out longer than it actually happened, and, at the same time, time, they predicted the rapid fall of Kyiv, which survived.
It is reported that the citizens of Ukraine learned how to make Molotov cocktails according to the announcements of state services, and then recorded on video how they set fire to Russian armored vehicles. Ukrainian soldiers waited in ambush and fired Western missiles at Russian tanks. The President of the country recorded messages from the streets of his capital, in which he called on his country to repel the invaders.
“It was a stark contrast to another set of images just seven months ago, when the Taliban marched unopposed into the Afghan capital of Kabul. Most of the Afghan soldiers have given up their uniforms and weapons. The president fled to the United Arab Emirates, leaving his country to the Taliban militants it fought for nearly two decades, the article notes.
The intelligence community and the US military have underestimated the will of both, according to US lawmakers. countries to war.
It is reported that had the US view of Afghanistan been more realistic, efforts to evacuate Afghans who have aided the US war effort could have begun earlier – or perhaps some of the billions of dollars spent on training the Kabul military could would have been spent differently.
“On the Ukrainian side, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle say that if the United States had a better understanding of how strong and effective Ukrainian resistance to a Russian invasion would be, they could send more weapons into the country sooner,” the story said.
Journalists emphasize that the Ukrainian military has launched a counteroffensive, which indicates that the country's leadership intends to do more than just protect Ukraine from Russian invasion.
“Over the past week, Ukrainian forces have used tanks and fighter jets to attack Russian positions near Kiev and other cities, demonstrating that their goal is not to retake territory, but to destroy Russian troops. This is a sign not only of a well-thought-out strategy, but also of a clear intention of Ukraine to defeat the Russian army and win the war.
Now intelligence officials believe that the Russian war in Ukraine is failing.
However, Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to change his tactics, doubling down on the hard attacks he has used in recent weeks, or try to escalate the situation by trying to force the West to stop supporting Ukraine.
Business Insider: Volodymyr Zelensky writes the future of crisis leadership
Journalists emphasize: Zelensky now, from appearance to behavior, sets the tone for the image of a modern crisis leader.
– From his appearance – unshaven face and simple dark green T-shirts and zip-up sweaters – to his direct and impassioned tone, his active use of social media and his presence on the streets of Kyiv, Zelensky is changing the image of how a modern world leader should behave, the article says. .
It is also noted that Zelensky uses every opportunity to convey the feelings of his country to the world and is not afraid to appeal to emotions.
Source: CNN, Sky News, Politico, The Ne w York Times, Business Insider
