The allies differ on strategy for the coming year and the more immediate question of what Ukraine needs ahead of a major offensive in the spring.
… When the new British foreign secretary, James Cleverly, visited Washington this week, he gathered reporters for lunch and made the case that it is possible for Ukraine to score a “victory” in the war this year if the allies move fast to exploit Russia’s weaknesses. Officials in Poland, the Baltic States and Finland have largely agreed with the British assessment.
American officials pushed back, saying it is critical to pace the aid, and not flood Ukraine with equipment its troops cannot yet operate. And they argue that in a world of limited resources, it would be wise to keep something in reserve for what the Pentagon believes will likely be a drawn-out conflict, in which Russia will try to wear Ukraine down with relentless barrages and tactics reminiscent of World War I and II.
So the emerging “consensus” is that this will be a longer conflict and the winner is yet to be decided.
Ukraine’s army and western tech have so far proved superior, I doubt Putin can motivate the masses the way Stalin did in “The Great Patriotic War” even from the barrel of a gun.
