Russia has primary responsibility for pushing for a peaceful solution with Ukraine
Russia has primary responsibility for pushing for a peaceful solution with Ukraine
Battle for SeverodonetskyThe easternmost part of the Donbass, where the Ukrainian army still has a defensive position, has entered the final phase, with Russian troops destroying all bridges over the Donets River, which connects the city to its sister city, Lysichansk. . The Russians now control more than 80% of the industrial city, with the remaining Ukrainian troops trapped without supplies. If Russia takes control of Severodonetsk and Lisichansk, the entire Luhansk Oblast will be in its hands, allowing it to march with Ukraine to Kramatorsk, the last industrial city of the Donbass. In recent weeks, Ukrainian troops have taken heavy losses as Russian forces destroyed their way into Severodnetsk using artillery fire. Officials in Kyiv have said that more than 200 Ukrainian soldiers are being killed every day and the soldiers are running out of shells and ammunition. While these public statements have been made to prompt Western allies to increase arms supplies, they also paint a bleaker picture of the situation in the East. Despite their valiant resistance in the north and northeast, which forced the Russians to retreat from around Kyiv and Kharkiv, the Ukrainians never stood a chance to push the Russians back into the Donbass.
The strategy of the West has been twofold. He has sent money and weapons to help Ukraine resist Russian aggression and imposed sanctions on Moscow to make the war financially painful. While arming Ukraine has certainly slowed Russia’s progress (with heavy losses on the war front), it has failed to stop the Russian war machine. Russia has taken over most of the major cities in the east and south, including Mariupol, Berdyansk and Kherson, and Severodonetsk may be next. The economic sanctions have had mixed results. The sanctions have hit Russia hard and its economy is expected to contract by 8.5% this year. But, at the same time, it has continued to benefit from high oil and gas prices, while on the other hand, rising inflation has hit the global economy. And Ukraine’s economy, needless to say, is facing collapse. Since the ‘weapons and sanctions’ approach has failed in its objectives, other options must also be explored to end the war. Between Russia and the maximist positions taken by the US, France, Germany and Turkey have maintained few lines of communication with Moscow and Kyiv. These countries should encourage both sides to negotiate and try to revive new proposals where all sides get something and lose something in return for peace. Ending the conflict is imperative not only for Ukraine but also for the world, which is suffering from high prices for everything from food to fuel. Russia, whose invasion has pushed the world to the brink of a devastating security and economic crisis, has a primary responsibility to end the war through a political settlement.