The West is “pushing” Ukraine to develop a “realistic” war plan for next year – The Wall Street Journal

The West is “pushing” Ukraine to develop a “realistic” war plan for the next year.

This was reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing sources.

Allies believe that they will not be able to provide enough resources to secure a “complete victory” for Kyiv. American and European officials say they still support Ukraine in reclaiming its internationally recognized borders in the long term. However, due to decreasing public support for military aid, a military plan with “achievable goals” needs to be developed for next year—so that the West can communicate to its voters the need to continue supporting Ukraine.

According to the publication, there is “tension” between Kyiv and the West due to the gap between the desired outcome and the realities on the ground. The West has told Ukraine that a full victory would require support worth hundreds of billions of dollars, which neither Washington nor Europe can provide.

Few in the West believe that current levels of support can be sustained for many years.

In particular, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy will discuss this with President Zelensky. They want to talk about “how best to define Ukraine’s victory and what assistance will be needed to achieve it.”

Ukraine’s attempts to sway Western opinion with a large-scale offensive were met with skepticism. Some Western officials “express concerns that this might just be like a political sugar high,” (a term meaning a short-term boost followed by a sharp drop), which they may regret in six to eight weeks due to Ukraine’s declining ability to defend its territories.

Recently, former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO’s Joint Forces in Europe, James Stavridis, stated that Ukraine is unlikely to liberate all its lands by the end of the war but will likely hold the current frontline.