The Russian tank rolled the acreon border three years ago this month, triggering the worst struggle on European soil since World War II.
But on the frozen front lines, the war grinds on it – and the Russian army is slowly moving forward.
“Every day, it pushes the Ukrainian front line back from one kilometer either. My decision is that it can continue to do so in the rest of this year, ”said Fellow Ben Barry, senior Land Warfare’s senior at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.
“We must remember that it is a terrible. My decision is that more than one lakh people have been killed or seriously injured. Now the balance of casualties is probably in favor of Ukraine. I find a figure of 700,000 or 800,000 Russian casualties. chairman [Volodymyr] Zelansky says only 48,000 have been killed in Ukraine. It seems less to me, ”Barry told Egnes France Press.
Europe excluded
As the war enters the fourth year, Europe and Ukraine fear that they are being excluded from deciding their fate. Behind the curtain, the geo -political forces that shape the struggle appear to be rapidly changing.
Russia and the United States started peace talks in Saudi Arabia this week. Ukraine and Europe were not invited.
David Blogden, Associate Professor of International Security at the University of Exeter, said, “There will be some very important alarms in European capitals, which can be discussed regarding the security of his continent, his entire region.”
He said, “A type of bad outscent for European capitals is that Americans originally have any kind of peace mission in Ukraine or whatever they say to try to try some types of pieces without their saying The top is placed on the hook, “he told the Reuters.
Pispepers
Britain and France have already stated that they may be ready to contribute to a peace force in Ukraine, requiring an estimated 100,000 soldiers.
There are deep concerns at potential risk According to the Armida van Ridge, the head of the Europe program at Chautham House, London, to broadcast the Peacekeeping soldiers.
“America snatched NATO’s article 5 protection [on collective self-defense] For any soldier who will be kept in Ukraine. This means that they will not be preserved, according to which the prescribed effect is gone. We know that Russia breaks agreements. Under this, there is a long history of doing this [President Vladimir] Putin and previous president. So, it is quite likely that Russia can break the terms of any ceasefire or peace agreement well that can come … and then, ‘Okay, what do Europeans do in response?’ This can put them in a direct confrontation with Russia, which is a thoughtful idea, “Van Ridge told the VOA.
Defense expenditure
The European Union states that it has provided $ 145 billion in military, financial, humanitarian and refugee assistance to Ukraine over the last three years, which is more than half the total global assistance for Kiev.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said this month that European security would no longer be a priority, and Washington NATO is demanding an increase in its defense spending.
Van Ridge said, “Where is that money coming from is an important question.” “The European Commission seems to be open to allow some flexibility to its fiscal rules, which will make it a little easier for countries to spend on defense. But all this still takes time, so it is still going to be real.
According to the British Defense Secretary John Hele, the difficult decisions will be intensive implications for Europe.
“The decision we make in the coming weeks will define the result of the struggle in Ukraine in the coming weeks in the coming weeks, but will define the safety of our world for the coming generations,” Hele said in a speech in London on Tuesday.
