JRL NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine’s Implausible Theories of Victory; The Fantasy of Russian Defeat and the Case for Diplomacy” – Foreign Affairs
“As Russian forces gain ground … [Ukraine’s] president and allies … seem to agree: Ukraine must fight on to victory …. Russia would disgorge … [2022] territorial gains …. Ukraine would recognize neither the annexation of Crimea nor … secessionist statelets in the Donbas and would continue .. toward [EU and NATO] membership …. [f]or Russia, … clear defeat. … [with Russia] headed toward permanent enfeeblement …. Ukraine’s backers have proposed two pathways …. With help from the West, the argument runs, Ukraine can defeat Russia on the battlefield, either depleting its forces through attrition or shrewdly outmaneuvering it. … With some combination of battlefield gains and economic pressure, the West can convince … Putin to end the war — or convince someone in his circle to forcibly replace him. But …. [t]he most likely outcome of the current strategy … is … a long, bloody, … ultimately indecisive war. … and possible escalation[] including … potential[ly] … nuclear weapons. … Ukraine and the West should … reconsider … and shift from a strategy of winning the war toward … finding a diplomatic compromise ….”