Ukraine Fears ‘War Tired’ Could Cause Western Loss of Interest –

Kiev, Ukraine (AP) – As Russia invades Ukraine for the fourth consecutive month, officials in Kiev fear that the specter of “war fatigue” could shake up the West’s decision and help the country recover. resist the invasion of Moscow.

The United States and its allies have donated billions of dollars in arms to Ukraine. Europe has left millions of people homeless because of the war. And there has been unprecedented unity in post-WWII Europe in terms of imposing sanctions on President Vladimir Putin and his country.

But when the shock of the aggression subsided on Feb.24, analysts said the Kremlin could benefit from the protracted and entrenched conflict and a possible decline in the interests of Western powers that could put pressure on Ukraine to resolve it. .

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is already worried about the West’s proposals that he should make some sort of compromise. According to him, Ukraine will decide on the terms of peace itself.

“The stress is growing, people want some kind of result (which is beneficial) for themselves and we want (another) result for ourselves,” he said.

Italy rejected the peace offer and angered French President Emmanuel Macron’s reaction after saying that even if Putin’s aggression was a “historic mistake”, the world powers should not “shame Russia,” so when the fighting stops , we can work together “solution through diplomatic means”. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said such talks “could only embarrass France and all other countries requesting it.”

Also when former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said that Ukraine should consider territorial concessions, Zelensky replied that in 1938 Nazi Germany allowed part of Czechoslovakia to prevent Adolf Hitler’s invasion, as well as European forces.

Kiev wants to withdraw Russia from newly occupied territories in eastern and southern Ukraine, as well as the recovery of Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014, and parts of the Donbas that have been under Kremlin -backed separatists in the past. eight years.

Each month of the war costs Ukraine 5 billion dollars, says Volodymyr Fesenko, an analyst at the Penta Center, and this “makes Kiev dependent on the aggregate position of Western countries”.

Ukraine will need more advanced weapons to ensure victory, as well as a firm determination by the West to continue Russia’s economic pain to weaken Moscow.

“It is clear that Russia is determined to suppress the West and is now building its strategy on the assumption that Western countries will get tired and will gradually begin to shift their military rhetoric to a more tolerant one,” Fesenko told The . Associated Press.

War is still seen in both the US and Europe, fearing images of Ukrainian civilians dying in the continent’s biggest fighting since World War II.

As the United States continues to help Ukraine, President Joe Biden said last week that Washington will provide it with advanced missile and ammunition systems that will allow it to more accurately hit key targets in the field. war.

In the New York Times Essay On May 31, Biden said: “I will not force the Ukrainian government to make territorial concessions, private or public.

Germany, which has been criticized by Kiev and other countries for its reluctance, has promised the most modern air defense system.

“There was no such thing, even during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union was most dangerous,” said Nigel Gould-Davis, a researcher at the International Institute of Strategic Studies in Russia and Eurasia.

Although he saw no significant erosion in “strong support for Ukraine,” Gold-Davis said, “There are indications of varying tensions over what the West’s goals should be. They haven’t yet. clearly defined. “

Europe’s internal concerns are going into turmoil, especially as energy prices and shortages of raw materials began to cause economic damage to ordinary people suffering from high electricity bills, costs. fuel and food shortages.

While European leaders hailed the decision to block 90% of Russia’s oil exports by the end of the year as an “absolute success”, it took four weeks to negotiate and included a concession that will allow Hungary, which is increasingly considered the Kremlin’s closest ally. the European Union. Continue importing. A few more weeks of political refinement are needed.

“This shows that unity in Europe is slightly declining due to the Russian aggression,” said Matteo Villa, an analyst at ISPI in Milan. “This effort is evident in finding new ways to impose sanctions on Russia on its member states, and there are clearly countries within the EU that are less willing to extend sanctions.

Given the further economic impact of energy sanctions, the European Commission has indicated that it will not be in a hurry to propose new restrictive measures against Russia’s gas. EU lawmakers are also calling for financial assistance to citizens affected by rising heating and fuel prices so as not to drop public support for Ukraine.

Italy’s right-wing leader Matteo Salvini, who is considered close to Moscow, told foreign journalists this week that the Italians were willing to sacrifice and his league supported sanctions against Russia.

But he stressed that support is not without limits, amid signs that the sanctioned trade balance has shifted in Moscow’s favor, hurting small traders in northern Italy who are part of its base.

“Italians are ready to make personal economic sacrifices in support of Ukraine’s defense and to reach a ceasefire,” Salvini said.

“What I don’t want is for us to come back here in September, three months later, when the conflict is still ongoing. If so, it was a disaster for Italy. “Apart from saving lives and human life, which is an economic priority for Italy, if the war continues, it will be a disaster,” he said.

Barry’s report from Milan. Angela Charlton contributed in Paris, Lorraine Cook in Brussels, Justin Spike in Budapest, Hungary and Aya Batravi in ​​Dubai.