The Ukraine-Russia War and the sanctions turned into a “war of resilience”. Who will last longer? Ukraine? Russia? Europe? How long will the US help Ukraine? This is not a sports competition, this is a “war”. People are losing their lives, families are falling apart. The economic destruction caused by the war will make itself felt for decades. War and sanctions affect not only Ukraine, Russia, and Europe, but the whole world.
The foreign debt of the U.S., which has provided more than $100 Billion to Ukraine, is over $31 Trillion. This war is a sweet big cake for the “American Military-Industrial Complex,” but the burden is on ordinary Americans. That’s why a new generation of Americans is asking more questions about “endless wars outside” or “proxy wars.” While American politicians are extremely skilled and cunning at warding off these questions, they must ultimately listen to the voices of the street. The populist wings that have developed within both parties are increasingly cornering the established mainstream forces. In Europe, the situation is not much different.
The American hawks are highlighting and polishing the damage that the “Ukraine-Russia War” has done only to Russia. Their aim is to weaken Russia as much as possible and for Europeans to spend more money on defense. Those who advocate negotiating with Russia within the “European Union” are muted. For the hawks, who argue that Russia cannot be stopped by economic war or diplomacy, the only way is to prolong the war. The prolongation of the war depends on the continuation of the flow of weapons and money to Kyiv. For the Falcons, this aid is a bearable price for Americans. Europeans can also tolerate the negative impact of sanctions.
According to American hawks, the prolongation of the war is a situation in which the United States will continue to make strategic gains from weakening Russia. In this approach, the Ukrainians are seen as dead-bloodless virtual players of a virtual war played on computer screens.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said they were ready to negotiate “some acceptable results”. But what ‘acceptable results’ are is unclear. Both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin agree that the “Minsk-2 Agreement” is dead. Zelensky says that a prerequisite for negotiations with Russia is the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity prior to 2014. Russia, on the other hand, argues that its claims on the territories it annexes, including Crimea, should be accepted.
For the American hawks, the first step for negotiations is that Russia should withdraw its forces to the pre-2014 borders and accept all preconditions, especially compensation for war losses. Apart from this, there is no diplomatic solution. The Falcons advocate giving Ukraine the means to bring some degree of destruction and death to the territory of the Russian Federation in order to force Russia. According to hawks who hold this view, it is time for the West to show Putin that the “long game” strategy will fail.
Messages came from the Biden Administration suggesting that “Patriot” air defense systems could be supplied to Ukraine. These messages are considered a sign that the United States is preparing to provide more destructive, deadly, more effective weapon support for Ukraine that will change the game on the field.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the influential figures in the US Senate, made interesting comments on the “Fox News” channel while Ukrainian President Zelenski met with US President Joe Biden in Washington. According to Senator Graham, the only way to end the war in Ukraine is if “someone” in Russia “disables” Putin. Senator Graham, who made similar statements last March, also argues that the Biden Administration should send the advanced, long-range weapons it wants to Kyiv. Of course, there are serious differences of opinion among Republicans in the US Congress about the continuation of military aid to Ukraine, but at the end of the night, the hawks are usually the winners.
A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Ukraine, and hopes for an end to the war are fading. “The EU, on the other hand, turned out to be extremely limited in its ability to produce a solution despite the U.S. In a few days, the world will enter a new year, but there is little reason to be optimistic.
