Dan Altman, associate professor of political science at Georgia State University, described a new formula for ending the Russian-Ukrainian war in his article for Foreign Affairs magazine.
Points of attention
- According to the expert, the West should change its strategy of supporting Ukraine.
- With the help of cunning and readiness for long-term support of Ukraine, it is possible to force Putin to abandon aggression and stop the war.
- The plan to support Kyiv should not consist only in providing weapons to the Armed Forces.
How Ukraine can defeat Russia
According to the expert, the illegitimate president of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, will continue the war against Ukraine until he believes that he can win it.
That is why it is extremely important for Kyiv's allies to make him understand that this will never happen.
Dan Altman draws attention to the fact that the Western strategy of supporting Kyiv should not consist solely of providing weapons.
In his opinion, it is essential to use cunning and not exclusively force and pressure.
If Russian leaders believe that they will eventually win, then they will continue to fight. Changing Moscow's long-term calculations is as important as winning today's battles, the political scientist explained.
The West must also prepare for a long-term war
The key to ending the war is changing Moscow's expectations about how its military effort will develop three, five, and even eight years from now. Influence on the ideas that exist in the minds of Russian leaders should become the main goal of Western strategy. While there is no panacea that will immediately change these expectations, more can be done to begin to undermine Russian optimism, Dan Altman emphasises.
According to the expert, Putin is still convinced he can fight longer than the West has the patience and strength to help Ukraine defend itself.
Kyiv's allies must demonstrate their readiness to support the Ukrainian people, which will continue for many years.
According to Altman, only this will force Putin to give up his ambitions and finally stop the war.
